SHIFTERS features cast members Heather Agyepong (Des) and Tosin Cole (Dre) who embark on a fierce romance that exudes intimate, passionate and delicate connection. Playwright; Benedict Lombe & director Lynette Linton sets the temperature of familiarity, similarity and technicality perfectly between these characters of shared African ethnicity & British nationality.
The tale of SHIFTERS speaks on the power of Black love rekindling, reigniting, reappearing and rewinding after time has passed & the redeemable that occurs once time has been given space to heal, grow & expand, with the possibility of creating room for further reasoning; whilst simultaneously changing the taboo on how Black actors allow themselves to become vulnerable, open and transparent within close proximity, changing the narrative on how blackness is defined and articulated intimately due to what gets commonly denied within mainstream media when it comes to the unseen portrayal of Black characters romanticising globally.
The producers of Shifters joined forces with Idris Elba, Maya Jama and Little Simz to move this unique production from the Bush theatre to the West End, their collaboration payed off swimmingly.
As this production nicely incorporates reflective elements of Ghanian & Congolese culture, with both characters enriching & powerful characteristics highlighting their distinctive rich Western African cultural discussions and interactions exploring the depths of their cultural music, Afro-beats, traditional food, sense of humour; reminiscent of traditional African movements and songs imitated through outer expression playfully capturing the deeper expansion of their chemistry and admiration of Black culture, in the midsts of them balancing talks around their personal current circumstances alongside their shared and unforgettable cherished moments together before they’d parted ways.
SHIFTERS is simply an exploration of Black love, however this time around it is told through the lens of the black man & woman’s worlds falling apart, unifying & resisting before eventually shifting into beautiful nuances whilst intrinsically tapping into each others energy & wavelength that’s personable, identifiable, relatable and adaptable bouncing off each others backgrounds, similar worlds and common play grounds from children into adults.
SHIFTERS perfectly foretells the shifting nature of love, when two become one, separate and coincidentally reconnect. Whilst silently dealing with hidden shadows that may lowkey exist within black bodies due to trauma, complexities and untapped minds creating difficulty in communicating despite wanting to be truly seen by each other irrespective of past hindrances affecting the minds state at present, keen on being understood and loved when re-examining the courage to open up to one another about underlying past pain, false pretence, multilayered by in-built personalities, revealing all when in a safe space todo so.
True humanity & acceptance is strongly themed in this play, willingly practising the power of letting go if & when necessary whether its down to contently finding love elsewhere or in transit of shifting zones where past love affairs no longer serves you by both, therefore obeying the matters of the hearts orders to move on and wish each other well before departing ways once again. Overall, SHIFTERS is a perfect description of what the nature of Black love refers, connects and amounts to both wholly and soulfully. Highly recommend!