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★★★★★
If there’s one play that should be on your radar for this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, it’s Quaz Degraft’s ‘In the Black’. This intimate one-person dark comedy at theSpaceUK is causing quite the buzz, and after arriving in Edinburgh, I absolutely had to see it for myself. It is such a well-crafted piece of theatre, with some really important underlying messages, that absolutely need to be heard in 2025.
About the play
Centring on an aspiring black accountant who is in prison in the present day, the play starts with the character of Kofi sitting in an orange uniform. He is helping a cellmate with his finances and the conversation leads to a deeply insightful ‘how did I get here’ story. Without giving away any spoilers, the topics covered include racism, career goals on Wall Street, institutional ceilings and the lengths humans will go for their loved ones. The writing is exceptionally clever and involves so many twists and turns. For all of its harrowing themes, there is so much humour intertwined into the script, that it is sure to make you both laugh and reflect on what you are watching at the same time.
Questioning morality
The writing highlights a fictional black man’s experience, right from growing up as a teenager in the USA to aspiring for success in New York’s world of finance. However, the material follows an understated and subtle approach to sharing these important conversations. The character of Kofi is both cheeky and confident, embracing his Ghanaian American heritage and also understanding the daily challenges he faces due to his ethnicity. Even though the character is breaking barriers, he is not without flaws and it makes for an interesting watch, witnessing how Quaz has approached the subject of morality.
Exceptional and thought-provoking new writing
Every once in a while an utterly brilliant piece of new writing opens at the Fringe and I am sure it is no surprise that ‘In the Black’ is exactly this for me. With the state of world current affairs right now, you can’t help but think this is a vital piece of theatre that audiences need to see, that will hopefully force some of us to think twice about how lucky we are to have opportunities readily available. ‘In the Black’ is at the Stephenson Theatre at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall until Saturday 23rd August (not 10th and 17th). Performances start daily at 10:20am, with tickets available via the festival’s website.
*My ticket for ‘In the Black’ was gifted in exchange for an unbiased review.
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