Oroonoko

In 1688 the British writer and playwright Aphra Behn published her ‘true history’ called Oroonoko, or the Royal Slave. It tells the story of an African prince, tricked into slavery and transported to the British colony of Surinam in South America. Biyi Bandele has written a witty, thought-provoking play that is at once a celebration of Aphra Behn’s humanist vision, a bold and irreverent re-interpretation of the three hundred year-old clasic and a tragic love story that resounds with passion. First performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company at The Other Place, Stratford-on-Avon, in 1999

“There’s a political indignation, but a refreshing lack of political correctness in Bandele’s version [of Oroonoko]” ~ Paul Taylor, The Independent

“Bandele says he took ‘nothing except the plot’ from Behn’s work, and indeed the dialogue shows all the signs of his characteristic register. It is at once richly poetic and sardonic… One can bathe in the milk of Bandele’s phrasing…” ~ Ian Shuttleworth, Financial Times

“Bandele’s writing is an explosive, muscular blend of coloquial English, ornate ceremonial diction, formal diplomatic intimidation and ribald sexual jokes ... Bandele has written his own play but preserved both Behn’s humane indignation and her adventurous sense of romance. A treat” ~ John Peter, Sunday Times