One Night in Miami, a theatre production that opened on Wednesday at the Market Theatre in Newtown, was a tepid affair.

Although it was not entirely boring, it had many dull moments. The play, staged in conjunction with the US embassy, celebrates Black History Month. The play is written by renowned international writer Kemp Powers and directed by James Ngcobo.

Not taking away that Powers is a seasoned writer who has a credible profile, this time he came short. The play is a critical reflection on different aspects of black power and historic issues that remain as relevant as ever.

One Night in Miami is a story of four important men in the American black history - Cassius Clay, who later converted to Islam and became known as Muhammad Ali; soul singer Sam Cooke; Jim Brown, a famous footballer player; and Malcolm X, a feisty political icon. The four meet to celebrate Ali's victory in the ring, and their conversation is about brotherhood and the struggle of being black.

However, the show did not make sense at all. It spoke way over the audience's head. There were times when it went from being dull to a downer.

One could not relate to the men's high-grade American accent conversation.

Local actors such as Lemogang Tsipa (Cassius Clay), David Johnson (Malcolm X), Seneliso Dladla (Sam Cooke), Richard Lukunku (Jim Brown) and Sipho Zakwe (Jamaal), however, gave it their all. Nyaniso Dzedze (Kareem) was just misplaced in that character. Looking at the structure of the play, it might have been a challenge for
Ngcobo to direct this one.