Luther actor Idris Elba told the BBC he knows what heartbreak feels like as he spoke at the opening of a new play he is promoting.
Shifters, starring Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole, tells the story of Des and Dre, two young black people who meet again after years apart.
The drama of first love is described by The Guardian in a four star review as having “giddy kisses, real heart and soul” while also showing the “everyday tragedy of long-lost first loves”.
Speaking after the show at London’s Duke of York theatre, Elba said the theme was important now because “it feels like no one celebrates love anymore”.
“I’ve been in and out of love and I’ve had all the swings and roundabouts the characters have, so to see a love story that speaks to a young demographic is really unique.”
The 51-year-old actor is helping to promote the play alongside Love Island host Maya Jama and Mercury Prize and Brit-winning rapper Little Simz.
Playwright Benedict Lombe has now became the third black British woman to have a production staged in the West End.
But Elba says the play “is not about colour and even though the actors in it happen to be black, this show is for everyone”.
A City AM review said Shifters “gives a fresh perspective on black storytelling on London stages”.
“Dre and Des feel like two Black Britons who could feasibly exist, and we’re living in an age where that itself is ground-breaking on major West End stages,” Adam Bloodworth added.
Cole, who recently appeared in Netflix’s Supacell and plays Dre, says it’s great that people from certain ethnic backgrounds are able to “connect with my character on a deeper level”.
But he adds that the emotions Dre experiences “are universal as everyone has dealt with grief, love and knows the pain of making mistakes”.
A four star review in The Telegraph said the show “tackles everyday issues – from mental health to grief to class inequality – without ever laying them on too thick”.
Kirsten Grant added that overall it was a “tender portrayal of human connection”.
The show first opened at London’s Bush Theatre earlier this year and received rave reviews from critics.
The Times awarded the play five stars and said its success was down “to the enormously attractive and nuanced portrayals by Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole”.
Speaking to the BBC after the show, Agyepong said: “I always knew how important this play was but to see the audience really respond, gasp, cry and laugh throughout really feels amazing”.
