There’s no denying that civil rights activist Dr Martin Luther King was an extraordinary man.
But he was also human and the very clever play, The Mountaintop by Katori Hall exploits his fears and weaknesses in a powerful way.
Set in a Memphis motel room at the height of the American Civil Rights Movement in 1968, the night before his assassination. King (Caleb Roberts) has just returned exhausted, after making his infamous “I’ve Been To The Mountaintop” speech at a rally for sanitation workers.
As a storm rages outside, King orders a coffee from room service and has it delivered by maid Camae (Shannon Hayes) on her first day working.
She shares a cigarette with King; they flirt with each other and then start to debate a wide variety of topics from the light-hearted to the heavy.
As the plot unravels, the audience at The Lyceum in Edinburgh, discovers a twist when it becomes apparent that Camae is not all that she seems, like King, she is a deep thinker.
It’s a fascinating play which is helped by a simple, but very effective set by Hyemi Shin. Initially it appears to be just an ordinary hotel room, with a bed, table and TV perched on top of a slanting stone.
But as the story unfolds, the stage comes alive and director Rikki Henry maximises this to the limit, with effective lighting from Benny Goodman, allowing the set to rise brilliantly from the ground, to show which way King may eventually go, be it heaven or hell.
With excellent acting from both Roberts and Hayes, the play is simply spellbinding. The energy and skill shown by both to keep the audience on the edge of their seats is so impressive.
Blessed with an intense script, the two use this to create a simply wonderful piece of acting which shows King at his most ordinary, as a man with holes in his socks, fussing as to whether to shave his moustache off and forced to face his demons by the down to earth Camae.
There’s humour too in this 90 minute play and it’s a stunner to watch. The Mountaintop runs at The Lyceum until Saturday, 21st June 2025 and ticket availability can be found via www.lyceum.org.uk.
Author Bio:
Rebecca Hay is an experienced travel writer and member of The British Guild of Travel Writers. Follow her adventures with her family on Twitter and Instagram @emojiadventurer and on Facebook via EmojiAdventurers2.
Photographs by Mihaela Bodlovic
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