Sunny Side Up

 

“Remember everything you’re about to see happened to me. Not David Alade, let’s call him Lil D” 
This opening line of Sunny Side Up reverberates in the audience’s mind throughout this cleverly crafted 70-minute play, as it provides a lens through which all the trials and tribulations of writer and performer David Alade’s should be viewed. This melodic refrain is repeated at various pivotal moments during the play, which acts as a stark reminder that this is not a piece of fiction but rather a true life story dripping in honest and raw reality.

Against the harsh backdrop of a series of metallic fences and gates, we meet a proud Peckham local and wide-eyed primary school aged Lil D, he’s spunky, eager to impress and bashful at the thought of how to navigate plucking up the courage to talk to his classroom crush. In his pea green uniform our protagonist attempts to woo his first love by asking to borrow her pencil sharpener, this romantic gesture culminates in him proudly showcasing his newly sharpened pencil for all to see. Alade’s conveys the naïve innocence of childhood in such charismatic manner, that you find yourself warming to Lil D almost instantly and wanting to protect him from the potential hardships of his environment. 

A deeply rooted desire to be liked sees Lil D fall in with the wrong crowd as he struggles to fit in at his new Secondary School. Frequently told to ‘man up’ and that his sentimentality has no place in this new setting, the same boy who a few scenes clasped an overly sharpened pencil alarmingly trades in that pointy object for a perilous flick knife, which then escalates to an 8 inch blade. Innocence turns to fear as Lil D’s world is invaded by the flashing blue lights, the sound of sirens and the chilling echo of gunshots. Thankfully Lil D manages to escape his ill-fated environment, as he pins his hopes and dreams on a fresh start far away from the dangerous streets of Peckham, when he secures a place at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge.

Lil D’s unwavering love and devotion to his father Sunny is the emotional backbone of Sunny Side Up. Alade effortlessly changes his physicality, mannerisms, and voice as he flits between embodying his Nigerian father, and then in an instant reverts back into being Lil D. The heartfelt conversations between father and son are a true masterclass in multi-role character acting. Lil D affectionately refers to his family as ‘the Dream Team’ from which many sports analogies ensue. As head of the family Sunny is of course the Captain of the team. Upon discovering his father has suffered multiple strokes and  a cancer diagnosis, leaves the Dream Team emotionally shellshocked as they rally around and attempt to process this earthshattering news.

Sunny Side Up blends poetry, rap and spoken word. From the rhythm and pace to the vivid metaphors that are depicted, there is an undeniable sense that every single word, that writer and performer Alade has chosen to use, has been painstakingly selected, every vivid metaphor he paints is considered and intentional. Sunny Side Up is a tale of love, male identity, grief and the unshakeable bond between father and son.

Reviewed by Ruby Isla Cera Marle 

Sunny Side Up is playing at Theatre Peckham until Saturday 4 March, to find out more and to book tickets please visit: www.theatrepeckham.co.uk/show/sunny-side-up-23/