Something special from two performers, both excellent in their field, fluidly conversing in trumpet and spoken word to the seminal original tracks from ‘Kind of Blue’Summary
Rating
Excellent!
Many jazz enthusiasts flocked into Summerhall’s Tech Cube Zero, seemingly full of anticipation for an emotional connection to the music of Miles Davis, particularly to his landmark jazz album: Kind of Blue, the original source of Miles produced lovingly by Delirium and Lauren Reed Productions.
We’re instantly in the vibe of a basement jazz club, using a dark-stained wooden wall behind a raised stage, complete with a piano and drum kit. Miles Davis (Benjamin Akintuyosi) is revealed and Jay (Jay Phelps) enters, a centrally placed tape recorder is pressed to play the original Davis’ 1959 album Kind of Blue to start the narrative: as the current pressure of a record company weighs heavy, Jay craves inspiration from the tapes and holds the very present incarnation of Davis to account, demanding to know more.
Miles is written and directed by Delirium’s Artistic Director, Olivier Kaderbhabi, a self-confessed jazz fan. This is evident in the scripting decision to focus on the music and the man behind it. It is a masterclass on how and why a musician creates, achieved by having a conversation with the music itself. Featuring exquisite live music from leading UK jazz trumpeter, Phelps, who came up with the concept, Miles successfully places top musicianship alongside the multi-disciplinary storytelling style of Delirium.
Miles Davis was raised in America during segregation, and although he was the son of relatively affluent parents, it didn’t negate his experiences of the racial discrimination of the era, even when he became a prominent black musician. Finding freedom in Paris, music was his defiance, and by focusing on the recording of Kind of Blue at Columbia Records in 1959, his narrative begins to give Jay space to hear things, to understand the new form of improvisation that Davis had found. Jay explores Miles’ discipline and his cultural influences as he dissects his album.
Collaborative lighting design gem, Alex Lewer, enhances the storytelling to create atmospheric, smoky environments and snapshot moments of spotlighted magic. These snapshot moments are fluidly recreated as vignettes by the performers. Visual explorations of historic events are captured by Colin J Smith’s video design using projected or project-mapped montages of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. It’s great to see original images of Davis, too, that remind us that the play is still a biopic. Stylistically, many of Miles’ monologues are backed by Kind of Blue, giving an occasional goosebump. Likewise, the same effect is created when Jay imitates Davis’s trumpet style and plays along to the backing tapes.
Akintuyosi brilliantly embodies Miles with a raspy voice and physical dexterity. It is a breathtaking debut performance as Jay exposes his fallible character and well-documented private life. The play touches on the troubles, inner pain, the pimping, addictions and abuse, whilst undenying the unique talent and jazz experimentations.
Much of the former is told in Dilerium’s style of storytelling: the juxtaposition of jacking up heroin to a puppet baby’s softness encased in a boxing glove, or women represented by hanged dresses, disrespectfully discarded and dropped to the floor. The character isn’t really held to account here, and, referring back to earlier decisions around the play’s focus, Kaderbhai would admit that Davis would not have fared well under a contemporary lens of cancel culture. Instead, the play focuses on the current musical dilemmas of Jay, and whether the artist or the industry wins is left open-ended.
This is still an excellent deep dive into the soul and legacy of a jazz legend, deservedly the recipient of the 2025 Meadows Award for underrepresented artists. Dilherium has ambitions for a fuller production, and Miles needs a future life.
Concept by Jay Phelps
Written & Directed by Oliver Kaderbhai
Set & Costume Design by Ellie Wintour
Lighting Design by Alex Lewer
Video Design by Colin J Smith
Sound Design by Will Tonna
Stage Manager by Caity O’Meara
Produced by Delirium & Lauren Reed Productions
Miles has completed its run at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival
