Royal Welsh College Of Music And Drama, Cardiff
Fri 8 June
Words: GARETH LUDKIN
★★★★☆
On a wet and blustery summer’s afternoon, it’s a welcome sight to see so many people settling in to enjoy a matinee performance of Bessie And Me at RWCMD’s atmospheric Richard Burton Theatre.
Proving the perfect lunchtime break, away from the maligned Outlook inbox, the 1pm performance offers little in the way of descriptive prologue, however, this is surely to it’s benefit as a story of one lonely woman and her friendship with 1920s blues singer Bessie Smith is carefully brought to life though a concise 30-minute performance full of both humour and pathos.
Much is left unsaid throughout the production, but as Anjana Vasan – both writer and one woman performer of the piece – begins to bring to life the life and tribulations of Bessie Smith, along with the powerful influence of Bessie’s blues, a warm tale begins to unravel.
The stage is set with little more than a piano, old record player, a table and a set of chairs – perhaps a daunting prospect for a cast of one. But brought to life with the addition of David Harrington – the piano maestro who provides the blue-infused soundtrack to the performance – Anjana’s large, captivating and humours stage presence casts the size of the stage as an irrelevant fact.
One stage we greet a “brown girl from Singapore” who imagines herself as the famed blues singer as she puts on a pair of battered black shoes and dress; throwing herself into the sultry lyrics and bewitching character of Bessie’s tunes as they blare from the record player and on stage piano. “I wanted to be like one of Bessie’s songs… do it like she sings it,” she exclaims. The un-named woman aspiring and indulging in Bessie’s influence provides a kind of narrative to the performance as Anjana moves from captive fan to various moments and characters in Bessie’s tumultuous life – largely blighted by alcoholism and tragedy. From Ma Rainey’s monologue – Rainey being a popular blues singer of the age and mentor to Bessie – to the death of her first husband and tough second marriage, Anjana brilliant captures each character, eliciting a few laughs from the crowd along the way.
The influence and power of Bessie and her music is told through each character, and once again with wit and astute choreography that fills the stage and the audience’s imagination, Anjana is able to hold the audience’s attention with some beautifully poetic prose and heartfelt lyrics.
For those lucky enough to escape the umbrella-beating conditions outside, Bessie And Me provides a potted history of the life of Bessie Smith. It proves to be both contemplative and and engaging; a warm and comedic take on the life and influence of the Empress Of Blues. With an attractive £5 entrance fee, I was happy to let 30 minutes slip by in the company of one lonely young lady and her ultimate comfort: the 1920s blues singer, Bessie Smith.
