Review: I KNOW IT WAS THE BLOOD, London Irish Centre

Tara Lake introduces her family to Camden Fringe after a critically acclaimed US tour. I Know It Was The Blood: The Totally True Adventures of a Newfangled Black Woman recounts her growing up in Jersey in the 80s and 90s. Southern roots, bizarre reunions, and lots of music all have a place of honour in the monologue.

Lake's a woman of many hats, wearing those of writer, director, and performer of the colourfully personal project. She paints a picture of a family that sounds more like a welcoming community than your average kinfolk, with every woman in it having a theme song they would sing out of the blue or with their enjoying funerals more than weddings. Her script is colloquial and fast, dotted with snippets of musical numbers that create the score for the "rich ancestral music" she's grown up with.

She possesses an extensive vocal range and blows the roof off belting soul songs. The show is a celebration of identity and her ancestry, as well as the vibrant tapestry of her heritage. Jersey and the southern States become the background for her growth, both spiritual and physical. The audience sees her through disappointments and victories, with her close relatives and food turning into invisible presences on the stage.

I Know It Was The Blood is intimate and brisk but it does, obviously, contain references that will be completely foreign to a British crowd. Lake includes brilliant asides to explain places and typical dishes so everyone can be on the right page, but one supposes the stories would land quite differently if the quality and reputation of these instances were already known.

In any case, the piece is a warm look into Lake's life. As a multi-talented performer, she delivers an engaging and ever-moving view of it with plenty of amusing anecdotes and just a sprinkle of tragedy.

I Know It Was The Blood: The Totally True Adventures of a Newfangled Black Woman runs at the London Irish Centre until 11 August as part of Camden Fringe.

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