Anansi and the Grand Prize

To quote Wikipedia, "Anansi is an Akan folktale character. He often takes the shape of a spider and is considered to be the god of all knowledge of stories. Taking the role of trickster, he is also one of the most important characters of West African, African American and Caribbean folklore", an origin referenced at the start of the play through a traditional story perhaps more familiar to some as Br'er Rabbit and the Tar Baby.

Anansi and the GrandPrize, is set on a fictitious modern-day island where Anansi, despite being a greatly impoverished ne're do well has married the most beautiful girl on the island. His only chance of a future is to win the Grand Prize in the annual Festival - but he has no money, costume, choreographer or talent and his wife is rapidly losing patience and has caught the eye of the island's most famous son.

What we have here is an energetic, clever, engaging piece of story-telling. A tale of cunning and persistence overcoming wealth and position .. an interesting watch on what was, for us, election night! The cast work hard to create a spectacle and the musical underscore is brilliant. This is a bit of a joining in show - sing along with the songs you know, get pulled up to dance at the end (yes, I did) and barrack the protagonists when they are foolish - it genuinely feels like we are all sitting around as a community listening to the story-teller weave his tales of an evening.

Great pace and energy from the performers, perhaps a bit more projection required at times but I can forgive that in the small studio space, any rough edges to the production feel right in this context.

Uplifting and joyous, this is a great evening that really put a smile on our faces.