Reviews 2006
Reviews 2006
✭✭✭✩✩
by Kahlil Ashanti, production supervised by Hal Brooks
Barry Josephson, Diesel Playhouse Cabaret, Toronto
June 28-July 14, 2006
Basic Training, winner of awards at fringe festivals in Edinburgh, Melbourne, Vancouver and Montreal, now has its Toronto premiere before moving on to New York. While the poster and title might lead you to think this is a satire of US military life, in fact, Kahlil Ashanti’s autobiographical one-man show, where he plays 21 characters, involves as much straight drama as comedy and a mood far more of sincerity and sentiment than satire. It tells how Ashanti escapes his unhappy family by joining the US Air Force, only to escape the nightmare of basic training by being chosen for Tops in Blue, the USAF’s elite entertainment team. Ashanti’s search for his real calling parallels his search for his real father.
What’s so odd about this autobiographic play is that so much of it seems familiar. The abusive stepfather, the long-suffering mother, the drill sergeant from hell, even the drama queen who can out-insult anyone--all these we feel we’ve seen in countless films before. The characters who seem freshest are Ashanti’s Uncle Tony, who sees white conspiracies everywhere, and Ashanti himself, who maintains a warm-hearted innocence despite everything. His show is best seen as a showcase for Ashanti’s outstanding talents in acting, singing, dancing and comedy. The side-splitting talent contest sequence alone shows he’s sure to go far.
©Christopher Hoile
Note: A version of this review appeared in Eye Weekly 2006-07.06.
Photo: Kahlil Ashanti.
2006-07-06
Basic Training