Nancy Denis’ M’Ap Boulé is must-see story-telling at Adelaide Cabaret Festival 2023

Reading Time: 4 minutes

M’Ap Boulé is a powerful show combining story-telling with song from Sydney-born Haitian- Australian Nancy Denis. Throughout the 90 minute show, Nancy shares her experience of being born in Australia to Haitian parents and her combat for acceptance of her as she is, and who she loves.

M’Ap Boulé Nancy Denis — Photo: Claudio Raschella

The title of the show M’Ap Boulé is Haitian Creole for “I’m on fire”. It is an uplifting and joyous performance. Nancy Denis is a potent story-teller who takes the audience on an emotional ride from laughter one moment to tears welling in our eyes in another and back to laughter again. However, she’s not just a poetic and potent story-teller, she has an incredible singing voice too.

Nancy Denis is joined on stage by Kween G, an MC and hip-hop artist, Victoria Falconer on keys and musical saw, and Mick Stuart on drums. The music we hear throughout M’Ap Boulé was composed by the late Carl St Jacques. The rapport between Kween G and Nancy Denis when performing front and centre together is wonderful and heart-warming.

The set is simple but effective – candles adorn white blocks of different heights across the back of the stage. This together with the lighting helps visually convey the warmth we feel from M’Ap Boulé. Denis has several costume changes – opening the show in a low-cut jumpsuit, and later sliding into a strapless orange flouncy dress.

Denis doesn’t shy away from asking the mainly white audience confronting questions such as when was Australia established as a nation? And what is terra nullius? What about the stolen generation? An awkwardly catchy tune about genocide (gen to the side, gen-o-cide) may be stuck in your head long after the show has finished.

Nancy’s pride in her Haitian background is clear from the outset of the show with the audience being invited to stand for the National Anthem – it being the Haitian one of course! She wears the Haitian flag on her shoes and her back. However, she wasn’t always proud to be Haitian – sometimes she craved the acceptance of her white-skinned schoolmates and the attention of white boys. All in an effort to assimilate.

Since the young age of 3, Nancy Denis knew she came from warriors – her father told her about Haiti becoming the first black Republic and the murders her ancestors had to commit to free themselves from slavery. She tells us that as a 3 year old she could only relate the good and bad to Mustafa and Scar in Lion King but her father made sure that she understood that the killing of French soldiers was justice.

Knowing her ancestors fought so hard for their freedom from slavery and their independence has shaped Nancy Denis and has always been present with her in her struggles. She embraced their strength and heard their voices even in her darkest hour.

Her fall into the depths of despair is potently described through a song in which she asks that you:

“save me, save me from myself

catch me, catch me

hold me, hold me”

For talking about a topic so many still shy away from, Nancy Denis’ courage must be commended. There is a lot of hope and happiness on either side of the despair and sadness in M’ap Boulé and Nancy Denis poetically speaks about emerging from the cage of safety. This is powerful, potent story-telling and a sharing of hope and joy. We can’t recommend M’ap Boulé highly enough.