''Been So Long'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

with music and lyrics by

Arthur Darvill Thomas Arthur Darvill (born 17 June 1982) is an English actor, composer and musician. He is known for portraying Rory Williams, a companion of the Eleventh Doctor in the television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2012), as well as Rip Hunter in ' ...

and book by

Ché Walker Ché Walker is an English actor, playwright, theatre director, and teacher. His musical '' Been So Long'' played at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Young Vic Theatre. It was later developed into a feature film of the same name starring Mic ...

. The musical is based on Walker's 1998 play of the same name. ''Been So Long'' premiered at the

Young Vic The Young Vic Theatre is a performing arts venue located on The Cut, near the South Bank, in the London Borough of Lambeth. The Young Vic was established by Frank Dunlop in 1970. Nadia Fall has been artistic director since 2025, succeeding ...

on July 11, 2009 and then transferred to

Traverse Theatre The Traverse Theatre is a theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded as The Traverse Theatre Club in 1962 by John Calder, John Malcolm, Jim Haynes, Richard Demarco, Terry Lane, Andrew Muir, John Martin and Sheila Colvin. The Traverse Th ...

in Edinburgh on August 7, 2009 as part of the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

. A live cast recording was also made of the production.

Original Cast

* Yvonne -

Naana Agyei-Ampadu Naana Agyei-Ampadu is a British actress of Ghanaian descent. Born in Accra, Agyei-Ampadu moved to the UK as a child. She studied law at the University of Sussex, before embarking on a career in acting. She graduated from the Central School of Sp ...

* Gil -

Harry Hepple Harry Hepple (born David Matthew Hepple) is a British actor and musician. Career Hepple graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 2006. The same year he made his professional debut in ''Alaska'' at the Royal Court Theatre with Rafe S ...

* Raymond - Arinze Kene * Simone -

Cat Simmons Cat Simmons is an English actress, known for her role as DC Kezia Walker in the long-running ITV drama ''The Bill'', and for starring in ''Family Affairs'' as Scarlett Anderson. She also played Sista Twista in '' Life and Lyrics''. She also ma ...

* Barney -

Omar Lye-Fook Omar Christopher Lye-Fook MBE (born 14 October 1968), known professionally as Omar, is an English singer, songwriter and actor. He grew up in Canterbury, Kent, and learned his craft classically, playing the trumpet, piano and percussion. He al ...

* Singers - Samantha-Antoinette Smith, Gemma Knight Jones, Jenessa Qua

Film adaptation

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

, directed by Tinge Krishnan, was released on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

on October 26, 2018. The film stars

Michaela Coel Michaela Ewuraba Boakye-Collinson (born 1987), known professionally as Michaela Coel, is a British actress, writer and television director. She is best known for creating and starring in the E4 television sitcom ''Chewing Gum'' (2015–2017), ...

as Simone and

Arinzé Kene Arinzé Mokwe Kene () is a Nigerian-born British actor and playwright. Early life Kene was born in Lagos, Nigeria in 1987 and moved to London when he was four. Kene's father was a taxi driver. Kene was bullied growing up and was encouraged t ...

as Raymond.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official London Theatre Guide review
2009 musicals Musicals based on plays Soul musicals Original musicals British musicals