The Brown Suite – Sultry And Cool

The Brown Suite opened at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre last night, bringing the achingly cool style and sounds of  New York 1970s to the West Midlands. The creation of BlacBrik, Nahum Mclean and Darius Drooh, The Brown Suite tells the story of the hippest nightclub in New York, and the people who were the faces there, Marcus, Denise, Julian, Ray, Angela, Victor, and the all important DJ, Mr New York. We start with their build up to their night out, following their lives and actions, before they all meet in the queue to get inside. Everything in the story is told through the medium of dance and music. And what music it is!

The songs are all instantly recognisable classics, coming from the songbooks of James Brown, Etta James and Sam Cooke. We have the feelgood classic for the ages ‘I’ve got you’, the elegiac elegance of ‘At Last’, and the gentle beauty of ‘You Send Me’ showing just what a range of styles these three immortal artists cover. The music is the soundtrack to the story and events, there is no dialogue at all, but the expressive dance and movement clearly shows you what is happening at all times, allowing you to just wallow in the music and enjoy the spectacle.

The leads in this ensemble cast are super talented dancers, mixing funky soul movements with ballet style. They also have incredible chemistry, not least the sensuous pairing of Lukas Hunt as Marcus and Leila Wright as Denise. Their dances together are incredibly languid, you almost feel like you are intruding.  The rest of the team are just as good, Hugo Bragg, Darius Drooh, Monique Jones, Mahum Mclean and Joshi Martina all add something new and incredible to the piece, whether it be friendship style dance offs, or more serious romance and heartbreak.

The lighting and staging is incredible, using colours that genuinely make you feel you could be back in 1975 New York. I love the section where the ladies are reapplying their make up in the restrooms – this music is muted to make you feel like you are in there with them, whilst the costumes by Maybelle Laye are just stunning, perfectly creating that just on the cusp of disco look.

The Brown Suite is something new and exciting in its perfect fusion of dance and soul music. I loved it!

The Brown Suite until 7th October, click here for ticket information.

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