A Series Of Unfortunate Events

By Adewole Ajala

As the pre-run viewing of the Tosin Otudeko’s play Heartbeat opened to a packed house in Ikoyi, Lagos,  the musical tale performed by the Garden Theatre came with doses of bliss, prevarication and the search for identity.

The dimly lit stage displays a sign that reads ‘Heartbreak Avenue’. This is followed by the entry of a young lady clutching a bundle of clothes. She is also in tears and this caps a disturbed look which evokes pity from the audience. Her search leads to the ‘hope academy’ where she collapses in a heap.

 Her name is Arinola (Zara Abimbola Udofia) and she is carried indoors by the trio of File (Kelvin Alozie), Adimogbia (Frederick Ekpu) and Bisi (Damilola Kalejaiye).

Her entry into this sanctuary commences the organic plot of the play which is rife with tales of love, lies and the search for self.

The proprietor of the academy is Mama Jay (Tubonsun Aiyedehin), Bisi’s mother and Arinola’s aunt. Throwbacks give a peek into the origin of each character’s present predicament.

Arinola lost her mum (Sola Onayiga) to a burglar’s stray bullet, File used to be a street disciple while Adimogbia does not have an inkling of where his parents are. This unearths a setting which devours dreams but there is some respite for the haven’s inhabitants who revel in their short-lived happiness and hope for better days.

Love exists next to hate and the thin line between these mindsets is shown in the relationship between Arinola and Bisi. Both girls are cousins but as soon as File’s affections tend to Arinola, her cousin Bisi takes offence. This commences a mental conflict between both parties and soon enough cracks start to appear. Struggle also fits into the formula as street touts Kashi (Toritseju Akiya Ejoh) and Ekolo (Aliu Olanrewaju Olatunji) burst the bubble of the academy’s semblance of peace with a bundle of lies. Their efforts add to the series of unfortunate events that envelope everyone in its wake. There can be no other conclusion for people who choose to build their castles in the sky and their preference for inaction ends with bloody consequences.

Everything is a lie or so it seems. Even the famous academy was built via fraudulent burns to the ground at the end making you long for the comic relief of Adumogbia whose first love is food.

The denouement to the play comes after File’s attempts to stop a pyromaniac go wrong. He is consumed by the inferno and dies in Arinola’s arms giving a touching end to the two-hour play and expectations for their love.

But the play is not just about tears as highlights of the piece includes the vocal prowess of the characters and an infectious choreography which goes in tandem with the wonderful tunes of a music team that does justice to memorable soundtracks like Voice in the Wind, Hope, Just Believe, Oya, Season, Secret, Hold it Back, Who Would’ve Thought and The Day- diverse tunes which cut jazz, African contemporary and classical genres while altering the various moods belying the play. The pre-run viewing is the start of an extensive production journey to develop a long running musical by the artistic director Tosin Otudeko and with the success of the premiere that might happen sooner than expected.