Simply Heavenly - Walkabout Season

Synopsis

Written in 1957, Simply Heavenly was born out of a series of short stories featuring Jess B Semple's bar room philosophy on life, love and the pursuit of the easy way. An offbeat Harlem everyman living in a rapidly changing America, Simple became Hughes's most enduring character expressing the everyday victories of an ordinary hero. Simply Heavenly first ran on Broadway in 1957, giving a voice through humour and song to the African American experience. With gentle satire, insightful ramblings and street-wise humour Hughes chronicled the hopes and despair of black America.

Our Review:

26 October 2004

As part of the Young Vic’s ‘Walkabout Season’, its highly acclaimed production of Langston Hughes’ musical comedy Simply Heavenly pays a welcome visit to the Trafalgar Studios. Rob Howell’s relaxed bar room design seems as comfortable in its new home as the cast and so integrated that the audience have no qualms in lounging around it in the interval.

Since the transfer, only a few parts have been recast. The leads remain - including Rhashan Stone, Ruby Turner and Clive Rowe, who all positively shine - while the slightly reshuffled ensemble remains a strong unit. Altogether, they exude a sense of community as actors and characters – and boy can they sing!

Hughes sets the piece in 1920s Harlem and the plot, like its lead character is Simple (or Semple, Jesse B Semple): Jesse is in love with Joyce and wants to marry her but all manner of obstacles prevent him – for a start he’s already married. Throughout Jesse's trials and tribulations, the frequ...

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Latest User Review

81.101.67.135) - 29 December 2004:

I'm sorry, folks, but the story is not dramatically strong or cohesive enough. Big singing (however stupendous) does not a musical make....

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