Review: Eclipsed

Hey readers!
It's time for my review of Eclipsed.
Being the huge Star Wars geek I am, I was extremely excited for this play to see Lupita Nyong'o live. This was a really interesting play and not one I would usually go to. Eclipsed is the story of five extraordinary women brought together by upheaval in their homeland of Liberia. They forge a close-knit community... one that inspires them to feats of increasingly greater strength. Directed by South African-born Liesl Tommy, Eclipsed is a stirring tale of hope, humor and resilience. The play stars an all black and all female cast, which really shows how good theatre is when it comes to diversity. The show handles a really strong subject matter that may make certain people uncomfortable, but I thought the show handled the subject very well. The show features a very strong cast, but the three cast members who stood out the most for me were Lupita Nyong'o as The Girl, Saycon Senbloh as Wife #1 and Pascale Armand as Wife #2. They each just showed so much emotion and captured the fear and hope of freedom of the character's perfectly. Lupita, Saycon and Pascale have all been nominated for Tony's and I wish them the best of luck for awards night! The way the play is written is very clever and you are completely transported to Liberia, 2003. The set, costumes and lighting were all really good. Lupita called out a man in the audience using his phone, while staying in character, which I applaud! Bad behaviour in theatre has gotten really bad so it is great when an actor calls it out, especially whilst staying in character. The play occasionally featured humour, mostly delivered by Pascale Armand, which worked well, mostly due to Pascale's great comic timing. At the end of the show, the actors read out a few names of girls who had been kidnapped in Liberia, which I found to be really heartwarming. What bugged me so much, was that while the names were being read, a few audience members walked out. To me, this just felt really disrespectful.

The featured star of Eclipsed is, drum roll please... LUPITA NYONG'O!

Lupita gives a really moving and convincing performance, I think she was perfectly cast in this role. She plays a 15 year old girl and she is so good at it that my Mum actually thought she was! This is her Broadway debut and I hope she goes onto more shows after this!

Now for my final verdict on Eclipsed. I give Eclipsed...

I would recommend this play to fans of Lupita Nyong'o and for those who would like to know more about the Liberia war. This play isn't for everyone though, as I'm sure a few people may feel uncomfortable watching this.

Think it should have got a higher rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.

Join me next time when I will be reviewing She Loves Me.

Thanks for reading!

-The Reviewer