...blackbird hour E-Book

babirye bukilwa

• Herausgeber: Nick Hern Books
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Serie: NHB Modern Plays
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 73

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

'This "love" word. Do people just use it when they feel sorry?' Eshe hasn't left the flat. Loved ones keep reaching out: blowing up her phone and showing up at her front door. They say they're going to 'save' her. She's not saying anything back. Until, in the dark early hours, surrounded by half-eaten food, dirty washing and a damn good playlist, she focuses on the letter in front of her. babirye bukilwa's play …blackbird hour is a visceral and moving exploration of care, belonging and of one queer Black woman's attempts to love herself. It was first performed at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2025, produced by Vital Xposure and directed by malakaï sargeant, before touring the UK. It was shortlisted for the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting, the Women's Prize for Playwriting and the Alfred Fagon Award. babirye bukilwa is an actor, playwright and poet. …blackbird hour serves as a continuation of their critically acclaimed playwriting debut …cake.

Leseprobe

babirye bukilwa

…blackbird hour

NICK HERN BOOKS

London

www.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Contents

Original Production Information

Dedication

Thanks

Epigraphs

…blackbird hour

Extracts from Eshe’s Diary

About the Author

Copyright and Performing Rights Information

...blackbird hour was produced by Vital Xposure in association with the Bush Theatre and premiered at the Bush Theatre, London, on 30 January 2025, with the following cast:

SISSY

Danielle Kassaraté

ESHE

Evlyne Oyedokun

MICHAEL

Ivan Oyik

ELLA

Olivia Nakintu

Director

malakaï sargeant

Designer

Khadija Raza

Lighting Designer

Jahmiko Marshall

Sound Designer & Composer

Mwen Creative

Captions & Video Designer

Will Monks

Intimacy Director &Movement Director

Asha Jennings-Grant

For Eshes and their boats x

This is dedicated to all the versions of me who have died: thank you for coming, holding and keeping me here. To all the versions of me I will meet: thank you for your patience, forgiveness, grace and tenacity.

Thanks

I would like to thank the following people for shaping this fruit: adoudu’, Adrian Gardner, Akiya Henry, Amarachi Nwokoro, Ashden Oke, Azuka Okafor, Cherrelle Skeete, Daniel Ward, Deji Tiwo, Donna Banya, EJ Saunders, Emeka Sesay, Emmanuel Ogunijinmi, Eshe Asante, Femi Tiwo, Gail Babb, Iman Xashi, Jane Fallowfield, Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, Kamara Scott, Kariima Ali, Khaleb Luan Brooks, Kimberley Okoye, Lorna Fallowfield, Louise Mayse, Martins Imhangbe, Michael Balogun, Michael Buffong, Mimi Findlay, Miranda Cromwell, Mohammed Manasray, Myah Jeffers, Naeem Davis, Nambi Kiyira, Nkechinyere Nwobani-Akanwo, Pepter Lunkuse, Rianna Jade Parker, Rob Ellis, Ruka Johnson, Ryan Mayse, Seye Isikalu, Shalisha Jennifer, Stella Magento, Susan Wokoma, Talawa Theatre Company, Tania Nwachukwu, Nottingham Playhouse Cherry Orchard Acting Company 2017, Tunji Lucas, Unique Spencer, X-BAG, Yami ‘Rowdy’ Lofvenberg, Yrsa Daley Ward, my twin sister Yvonne and my big sister Vivian.

I would like to highlight the following people for their generosity, patience, care and belief in my many forms, selves and contradictions: Vital Exposure, the Bush Theatre, Stephen Bailey, Imogen Sarre, Olivia Nakintu, Evelyn Oyedokun, Danielle Kassaraté and Ivan Oyik.

And to malakaï sargeant: you found me in Atlantis, thank you for reminding me that I can glow in the dark.

young seeds that have not seen sun forget and drown easily.

Audre Lorde, ‘Coping’

‘You will never break generational curses if the generation is still cursed and their approval is required.’

Characters

ESHE, Black, dark-skinned, twenty-seven, invisible disability

ELLA, Black, dark-skinned, thirty-two

MICHAEL, Black, dark-skinned, twenty-seven

SISSY VOICE, Black, dark-skinned, an ancestor

Note on the Text

… indicates painful thoughts

– indicates thoughts unspoken

/ indicates an interruption of thought or dialogue

[xxxxxx] indicates words not said but for context

Note

this is not a play about inverted comma mental health inverted comma nor is it an Angry Black Women issue play

This ebook was created before the end of rehearsals and so may differ slightly from the play as performed.

ACT ONE

… the boat

3.33 a.m.

December 8th 2016.

Bethnal Green.

floating

Thunder and crashing rain.

In fact it’s a (brain)storm.

ESHE is alone.

She wears an oversized T-shirt.

She wears one sock and underwear.

No bra. The space is filled with water.

Glitter.

She’s got some kind of sailor hat on, maybe a pirate hat or one of those colonial sailing hats used in navy propaganda.

It rests on top of a wig.

She has a bag with her full of ‘important things’.

She has a flask of brandy in her hand

and something boaty, maybe a sailing paddle in the other hand.

ESHE has a bandage on her left knee

and a phone/torch

a portable radio

(fishing rod?)

(a waterproof jacket?)

a small alarm clock.

floating in the water

rocking back and forth with the (brain)waves.

ESHE attempts to find signal.

She can’t.

ESHE attempts to find signal.

She can’t. She can’t.

SISSY VOICE. can’t reach you.

ESHE throws her phone in the ocean.

won’t reach me.

ESHE. you never wanted to be reached.

SISSY VOICE. can’t reach me

ESHE. you never wanna be got

SISSY VOICE. can’t cop me

ESHE. [you] cut your antenna.

thawed your branches

SISSY VOICE. i reach dem

ESHE. who’s dem?

SISSY VOICE. i reach me

ESHE. which dem

SISSY VOICE. roses don’t have branches

ESHE. which you?

SISSY VOICE. roses don’t have antenna

ESHE. they do. and roots. roses have roots.

SISSY VOICE. who’s buying you roses, that silly little michael?

ESHE. silly little me

SISSY VOICE. my ex-girlfriend’s son eshe?

ESHE. he’s not hers or mine

SISSY VOICE. you always talking in rhyme

ESHE. you started in poesy.

SISSY VOICE. you’re not smart

ESHE. i’m unbelievable mum. unbelievable.

ESHE goes into her bag and pulls out a brandy bottle and sips. She also sets her alarm clock to an hour and places it on the side of the boat so she can hear it. ESHE turns her pocket radio on in an attempt to find the perfect song. Nina Simone’s ‘Don’t Smoke in Bed’ plays.

SISSY VOICE. dramatic

ESHE. yeah

ESHE sips.

SISSY VOICE. big tune

ESHE. so big it doesn’t have a form

ESHE sings along for a moment. It’s quite beautiful.

She plays faux piano.

She makes shadow puppets.

She can sing. Really really well.

It does become too much.

She smells her armpits.

She pinches herself.

She slaps herself.

She pulls out some balloons and she blows them up.

She plays with them.

She pulls out a small cupcake.

She lights a candle and blows it out.

glitter

nausea

dance

sway

shapes

stillness

dance

dance

Joy

her paddle becoming a microphone.

Her alarm clock the truth.

Her balloons; her witnesses.

Tiptoes.

Her boat a courtroom.

ESHE sings this to us

to dem

stim

to it

to all

her boat her own.

She lights a pre-rolled spliff.

glitter

Drinks.

Gulps gulps

stim

She enjoys that fucking spliff.

The song ends.

sorry

Toto’s ‘Africa’ plays. Maybe the chorus – it is the worst part of the song. Maybe just the ‘dum dum dum de dum dum dum’.

absolutely fucking not.

ESHE’s phone rings. She ignores it.

Bobby Brown’s ‘My Prerogative’ plays.

yeah okay.

ESHE reaches inside the walls of the boat and starts to throw things out of it.

A half-eaten apple

crisp packets

magazines

socks

toothbrushes

pillows

fried-chicken boxes

tissue

Rizla

nicotine

cigarette butts

lamb patty

empty pho container

pizza boxes

ESHE’s phone rings.

cutlery    dishes

dishes

dishes

cups

mirror

mugs

tarot cards

crystals

paints

Phone ringing.

vibrating

crystals

sage

painkillers

shoes

a notepad and pen.  She rejoices.

Another swig of brandy.

maybe another

ESHE begins writing a letter. It’s difficult.

SISSY VOICE. that about me?

ESHE changes the station and it’s white noise? Maybe radio murmurs? Maybe something sad.

ESHE finds writing this letter extremely difficult. She lights sage it rains

(maybe flowers)

ESHE slaps herself.

ESHE stims.

She makes it to the end of the letter.

ESHE’s phone rings again.

And her boat stops floating.

A knocking can be heard.

ESHE’s boat has disappeared. An interruption.

It’s stopped raining.

She has stopped floating.

For a moment ESHE is just ESHE.

(Brain)storm interrupted with:

ELLA. i got you roses!

ELLA appears. Soaking wet with a rucksack on, bike helmet and a dinghy.

SISSY VOICE. she still around?

ESHE.…

ELLA. esh? eshe? i have my key darling. but i want to. i want to respect your boundaries. and privacy… erm.

eshe? eshe my darling? love? can you let me in? am i allowed inside please?

ESHE. –

ELLA. esh? just… it’s been pouring outside. and…

i am respecting your boundaries! honouring your boundaries with an ‘s’. i am. i. i umm. i did call. and i’ve text you sweetheart. i’ve been calling but you… i’ve been trying to contact you sweetheart to communicate. i can see that you’re – i. i know you’re up. it’s your time.

ESHE. –

ELLA.…

ESHE. –

SISSY VOICE. what time is it eshe?

ELLA. witching hour! i was researching, i do listen and i did listen. and i’ve been researching actually. a lot actually. about.

about time, and and and process and about witching hours in indigenous cultures! and yes. umm how for certain societies and subcultures. well people really and – not that you’re a person – you are whatever you want to be!

ESHE.… / …

ELLA. and the time of three a.m. is quite. it’s umm, it’s a time of liminality for lots of… shit.

ELLA listens.

ESHE smokes.

i can see your light on

ESHE switches off her torch.

my ears still work

ESHE pauses the static.

i just wanna know you’re okay.

you sounded really upset and in a way that really really concerned me… i care about you

…

i just wanna know you’re okay please?

that you’re alright… you know? not…

and then i’ll go.

ESHE smokes.