Goddess

From the critically acclaimed team that created New York’s Free Shakespeare in the Park’s production of Merry Wives (as seen in HBO documentary Reopening Night)! Berkeley Rep presents the world premiere of an exuberant new musical by award-winning playwright Jocelyn Bioh (School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play) and composer Michael Thurber, conceived by director Saheem Ali.

A mysterious singer arrives at Moto Moto, a steamy Afro-jazz club in Mombasa, Kenya. She casts an entrancing spell on everyone, including a young man who has returned home from studying in America. Will the big plans for his life — stepping into a political legacy and marrying his fiancée — be upended?

Inspired by the myth of Marimba, the Goddess who created beautiful songs from her heartbreak, this is a rousing tale of romance, the supernatural, and the quest towards one’s truest self.

Produced by special arrangement with No Guarantees and Octopus Theatricals.