The Young Vic is no stranger to storytelling theatre, having led the current revival with Grimm Tales and The Arabian Nights. But the potency of the form was demonstrated again this week with a one-off performance of Rhashan Stone's lively, accessible and often beautiful adaptation of Homer's Odyssey, produced as part of the contemporary black arts festival, Push.
As the cast, dressed all in white and bearing night-lights, gathered on the carpet, Josette Bushell-Mingo's haunting voice floated across the theatre. A tale of the past began to unfold and time stood still.
The evening was about much more than inspired storytelling, however. It was an event, offering the opportunity to see several generations of black actors on stage together, spanning over 60 years of acting experience. As the hero wandered the seas, trying to find his way back home, he aged before our eyes, with the role passing from the young David Oyelowo through Wil Johnson, David Harewood and Gary McDonald to veteran actor Rudolph Walker. It was like seeing a baton passed down the years, and pointed up the changing landscape in British theatre in which black talent is slowly being recognised.
On one hand you could enjoy this as a great piece of storytelling performed by accomplished actors and stylishly directed by Topher Campbell. There were some great comic moments, not least when one of patient Penelope's suitors suggested that if the woman was having difficulty finishing her wedding veil they should give her a simpler pattern.
But what made this so much more than just a party or a showcase was the way the material chimed with both performers and audience. Odysseus's struggle to find his way home, despite the dangers he encountered on his way, and Penelope's determination to sit out the worst, became a metaphor for an entire community, many of whose parents or grandparents made journeys across the sea to Britain in search of a new home. This may have been a one-off performance, but the impact will last much more than one night.
