Her Portmanteau 

Reviewed by Neal Weaver 
Boston Court Pasadena 
Through June 30 

RECOMMENDED 

This play by Nigerian-American playwright Mfoniso Udofia is part of a projected cycle of nine plays about the lives of the Ufot family in Nigeria and America.

The family matriarch Abasiama (Joyce Guy) emigrated from Nigeria, remarried, and settled in Massachusetts, while her grown daughter by her second marriage, Adiaha (Omoze Idehenre), has an apartment in NYC.  But Abasiama has not seen Iniabasi (Dele Ogundiran), her daughter by her first husband in Nigeria, in many years. Now she is eagerly and excitedly awaiting her visit. But when Abasiama is caught in traffic (among other problems), she must ask Adiaha to pick up Iniabasi at the airport.

Adiaha is eagerly expecting a joyful reunion with her half-sister whom she has not seen since she was eight years old. But Iniabasi is hostile and remote, spurning Adiaha’s overtures. Iniabasi is a grievance collector, and her grievances are many. She is annoyed at having to wait at the airport for an hour; at the fact that Abasiama did not come to meet her; and that she is taken to Adiaha’s New York apartment rather than Abasiama’s house in Massachusetts. There are a host of other issues as well. When Abasiama finally arrives, she is treated more coldly than affectionately; moreover, Iniabasi seems guarded about her personal life and her young son.

Gradually it emerges that the source of Iniabasi ‘s resentment is the feeling that Abasiama abandoned her when she left the girl’s father and came to America. She feels that Adiaha has robbed her of her birthright. And Adiaha feels that she is being unjustly blamed. There are faults on both sides, but that makes it all the more difficult for these women to mend and overcome their differences.

It is only when Abasiama opens Iniabasi’s portmanteau that reconciliation seems possible. What she finds there makes clear how much love is buried beneath Iniabasi’s anger and hostility.

Udofia’s play is an emotionally charged drama that examines the knotty problems that divide the generations, particularly when they are long separated. But Udofia does not make it easy for us. First of all, the Nigerian names are strange to American ears. Add to that the fact that both Abasiama and Iniabasi frequently speak the Nigerian Ibiblo dialect; also, their English is heavily accented, often leaving us to guess precisely what is being said.

Gregg T. Daniel gives the piece subtle and nuanced direction, and there are solid and passionate performances by all three of the actors, though there are times when the emotion tends to swamp the logic. The playwright makes us work a bit, but in the end the effort is well worth it.

The handsome and wonderfully detailed set is by Tesshi Nakagawa.

Boston Court Pasadena, 70 North Mentor Avenue, Pasadena. Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m. (626) 683-6801683-6801 or www.BostonCourtPasadena.org. Running time: one hour and 45 minutes with no intermission.