About the Show

A writer’s surreal quest through a gentrifying London, written and performed by Arinzé Kene.

Fusing live music, spoken word, and absurdist comedy, Misty is a thrilling journey through a changing city, teleporting audiences to the streets of gentrifying London in an examination of the pressures and expectations that go with being an artist in our modern era.

In a performance that is part poem, concert, and confession, Olivier Award–nominee Arinzé Kene—in his Stateside stage debut—self-consciously wrestles with cultural representation and identity politics as they relate to a new play he has been tasked with writing.

Directed by Omar Elerian and accompanied by a pulsing original score performed by a live band and composed by Kene, Adrian MacLeod, and Shiloh Coke.

Critic Reviews (5)

" 'Misty' narrowly addresses itself to white perspectives. It’s a trap that settings like this one make even harder to escape."
Read more

"It doesn’t tick boxes of what a play about a Black man should look like, or what any play should look like, for that matter. 'Misty' creates a new rubric."
Read more

" This metatheatrical portion ends up feeling more substantial than the story Kene the playwright agonizes over for two acts — a narrative that has a few poignant moments tucked between rote explanations of how real estate developers displace residents and erase cultural identity."
Read more

“...’Misty’ grapples with the seemingly irreconcilable conflict between the writer's desire to deliver documentary truth versus demands that he reshape the cultural conversation by focusing on other, more pleasant, realities.”
Read more

"This is a marvelous piece of contemporary theater if you are adventurous."
Read more

Cast and creative team