Many of us can relate to spending after school hours in our local chicken and chip shop, but only certain parts of London can claim they always had (what they consider to be the OG of shops), Morley’s. Writer Corey Bovell’s one-man show, ‘Chicken Burger N Chips’ takes a look at South London life whilst paying homage to the simple chicken burger - which is cooked on stage during the performance run.
Performed by Gamba Cole, we meet Corey, who’s on the cusp of adulthood. It’s the summer of A-Level results and he’s hoping to make it into university to study Music Management so he can come back and create something special in ends with his boys. But first, they’ve got to meet up at the local Morley’s.
We’ve seen shows which shine a light on Black Brotherhood take to the stage but ‘Chicken Burger N Chips’ seeks to tackle this from an original point of view. Writer Corey Bovell is tackling issues of gentrification in South London, relationships, knife crime and how as a Black boy you can be seen as a monolith depending on your associations.
Breathing life onto the stage, directed by TD Moyo, Gamba struts confidently through the one hour 20 minute monologue. Embodying characters like his best friend Sean and love interest Jodie so wholly you’d think he was telling a story to a close friend.
Music plays a massive part in the performance. Gamba proves his skill in rap with performances crafted for the play along with early 00’s favourites. We also see the importance of music which comes from an older generation as Corey’s father, a record shop owner, has obviously raised his son on classic reggae.
‘Chicken Burger N Chips’ is a testament that stories focused on Black boys and knife crime don’t always have to have an ending that’s heartbreaking.
‘Chicken Burger N Chips’ ends 11 Feb 2023, you can purchase tickets to Chicken Burger N Chips here