Tag Archives: Nigeria

Sep 22

You Gotta Fix the Trouble in Your Own Neighborhood Before Makin’ Trouble Anywhere Else: “The Ceremony”

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Photo by Ken Yotsukura.

Produced by CHUANG Stage, in partnership with Boston University School of Theatre and Boston Playwrights’ Theatre (with The Huntington)
A World Premiere by Mfoniso Udofia
Directed by Kevin R. Free

September 11 – October 5, 2025
Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre
Boston, MA

Critique by Kitty Drexel

Holy cats, tickets are sold out! Congratulations to the cast, crew and staff of The Ceremony! Break all the legs! A ticket waitlist is HERE. 

BOSTON — The saying goes, weddings, funerals, and babies bring out the best and absolute worst in people. Whether fearing change, fearing loss of control, or feeling overwhelmed by all of the pesky details, these three situations stir madness in even the most sensible of people. So, it makes sense that a loving but frequently rocky family dynamic, such as the Ufots’ in Mfoniso Udofia’s Ufot Family Cycle, would experience some instability during wedding planning. The Ceremony, now at BU’s Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre, shows us what happens when a family’s intergenerational secrets threaten a happy couple’s wedding plans.  Continue reading →

Feb 25

You Are Simply Made Perfect: “The Grove”

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The cast of The Huntington’s production of Mfoniso Udofia’s The Grove, directed by Awoye Timpo; photo by Marc J. Franklin.

Play two of the Ufot Family Cycle
Presented by The Huntington
Written By Mfoniso Udofia
Directed by Awoye Timpo

February 7 – March 9, 2025
The Huntington Calderwood
527 Tremont St. 
Boston, MA 02116

Critique by Kitty Drexel

BOSTON — The Grove is a play about being female, queer, and Black in a world that derides persons who persist in those identities. It follows Adiaha Ufot (Abigail C Onwunali returning in a tour de force performance) as she bargains with herself, her Ancestors, and her family to justify her existence. This is the triumphant second play in the Ufot Family Cycle by Mfoniso Udofia which runs at the Calderwood Pavilion in Boston through March 9. 

If you didn’t see Sojourners, the first play in the Ufot Family Cycle, here is a recap video graciously provided by The Huntington.

Attendees won’t need to have seen Sojourners to enjoy The Grove as The Grove stands on its own dramatic, design, and direction excellence, but knowing about Sojourners will help patrons understand the trajectories of the recurring Nigerian-American characters Abasiama (Patrice Johnson Chevannes who leads with quiet bravery) and Disciple’s (Joshua Olumide as the terrifyingly unhinged patriarch). Both have changed since we last met them: Abasiama has found success in STEM after earning her college degree and born three more children. Disciple is an adjunct professor who now displays obsessive narcissistic personality traits: sleep deprivation, financial abuse, gaslighting. Their home is a veritable warzone for their children Adiaha, Toyoima (Aisha Wura Akorede) and Ekong (Amani Kojo). Continue reading →