On May 28, HBO hosted a special screening at ArtBeam of the riveting movie “Nightingale.”
The film is about Peter Snowden’s journey through different fevers of madness, played by David Oyelowo (who fans may know from the critically acclaimed Selma). As the tale unravels, we learn more about Oyelowo’s character and his bouts with mental illness, sexuality and much more. Oyelowo gives a powerful performance in the one man show. Director Elliott Lester shared that thanks to Brad Pitt and his Plan B Productions being involved, the film was able to be seen and shown by HBO.
Audience members enjoyed the intense roller coaster ride. There were several breaks of humor spread throughout the movie, as well. At the conclusion of the screening, a brief Q&A was moderated by Neil Drumming with Lester and Oyelowo. After having huge success with Selma, Oyelowo’s main concern was to avoid any roles that would box in his creativity. He did not want to do roles solely for “black actors,” but roles that could be played by anyone regardless of race and gender, such as Nightingale. With a must-see performance, Nightingale is definitely a boundary breaking role for the David!
-Toyibat Oridami
Photo Credit: Dorothy Hong