One Man Spectacle
The history of Nigeria has been filled with political turmoil and corruption. Dan Hoyle visited Nigeria on a Fulbright scholarship while studying oil politics. In the off-Broadway play Tings Dey Happen, Mr. Hoyle delivers a remarkable one-man performance due to his extraordinary aptitude in replicating the unique accents of more than a dozen different personalities that he encountered during his one-year stay in the West African nation.
The show begins with Mr. Hoyle, dressed in all black on a black stage, delivering a monologue that has the audience believing is only an introduction. But after a few minutes, it becomes apparent that there won’t be any Nigerian actors in this play, only Mr. Hoyle, who, to further complicate matters, is white.
But the color of his skin, and the lack of any supporting cast quickly becomes a non-issue. The audience, through the eyes of the real life Dan Hoyle, is taken through the dangerous terrain of Nigeria in a documentary like setting. Mr. Hoyle plays the roles of a wide array of characters, such as a Nigerian sniper, an oil worker from Texas, a warlord, and a prostitute. The differentiation between characters is accomplished by the inclusion of a different accent and facial expression for each character, which truly makes this performance magnificent. Though at times it is difficult for the audience to keep up due to the pidgin dialect of English that is native to Nigeria, Mr. Hoyle successfully keeps his audience attentive and entertained throughout the 90-minute monologue.
Mr. Hoyle, through the role of the stage director, states that he wishes to take the audience out of the “New York City mindset” and into the world of Nigeria. Though difficult, due to a lack of scenery and special effects, a flourishing combination of sound effects, phenomenal acting, and an imagination creates the feel that the audience has actually been taken to West Africa. If viewers can completely relinquish the “NYC Mindset,” they will find themselves in an almost 3-D like simulation found in amusement parks.
By the end of the play, the audience is left stunned by Hoyle’s extraordinary performance. However there is also a realization that there is no solution in sight to Nigeria’s problems, which is clearly what Hoyle wanted the conclusion of his play to accomplish.