Black is the Colour of My Voice, Pavilion Theatre Worthing

Writer, director and performer: Apphia Campbell

Original direction: Arran Hawkins & Nate Jacobs

Reviewer: Lela Tredwell

A fiercely emotive tribute to the life and work of Nina Simone, Black is the Colour of My Voice is an inspired one woman show, set in one room, but with a far greater reach. Performed by writer and director Apphia Campbell, it packs a punch politically, while showcasing stunning songs, alongside a tender portrayal of its star.  

Meena Bordeaux (Apphia Campbell) has taken herself away for a few days to detox in the hope she can connect with the spirit of her late father. Putting down the cigarettes and booze, she instead turns to a suitcase of memories to unpack her past. Letters, hats and dresses emerge, each a key to unlocking Bordeaux’s story. From them, are woven a traumatic but rich life filled with humanity and hard earned wisdom.

Alone, Bordeaux (Campbell) holds conversations with her late father and animates her mother with lively comic timing. However, even behind closed doors, the outside world seems to find Meena as she tells her tale from child genius, to star, to civil rights activist, and all peppered with the music that made her a legend… or made someone a legend as the fiction and reality blurs. 

If you’ve come for Nina Simone, you will be met with a well-crafted exploration of her life, but the name Meena Bordeaux might throw you. Campbell has chosen to write the play using this pseudonym so the performer playing her lead will not feel pressure to imitate Simone’s iconic voice. Campbell sings parts of Simone’s songs with gusto and passion, expect favourites ‘To Be Young, Gifted and Black’, ‘Black Is The Colour Of My True Love’s Hair’, ‘I Put a Spell On You’, and a climactic rendition of ‘Feeling Good’. An impressive voice in her own right, Campbell brings to life the jazz era, while depicting the many struggles of our main character.

The way music is entangled with narrative is innovatively done. The emotional depth behind the songs seed the way for the more startling sequences towards the end of the play. A scene where Bordeaux (Campbell) remembers the impact of the civl rights movement and how she was affected by murders and politics, through news reports, is extremely moving. This leads to a powerful extended black out after Martin Luther King is assassinated and the heart-wrenching performance of ‘Mississippi Goddam’. 

Despite depicting a challenging life, this is an uplifting show which skilfully addresses the affronts to race and gender. Apphia Campbell was influenced while making this work by a conversation where a man referred to Nina Simone as “belligerent later in life”. In Black is the Colour of My Voice, Campbell expertly depicts why that ‘might’ have been while revealing the woman behind the genius. Campbell first engaged with Nina Simone through the emotions embedded in her music, and that comes across in how this show is presented with depth and heart. Performed to a standing ovation here in Worthing, Black is the Colour of My Voice has proved that even with over ten years under its belt it still has a great deal to say and its voice is as fierce and powerful as ever. 

Reviewed on 3rd May 2026