Miles Davis Play Review: Southwark Playhouse Borough 2026

Key Points

• Miles is a new play at Southwark Playhouse Borough in London, featuring a framing device where a young jazz trumpeter in 2026 summons the spirit of Miles Davis for inspiration.
• The play centres on 32-year-old Jay, who conjures an older, cynical Miles Davis, who discusses his life, heroin addiction, revolutionary jazz innovations, and influences from Africa.
• Davis in the play extols collaboration yet claims sole genius behind his seminal album Kind of Blue.
• The narrative unfolds non-chronologically over 90 minutes, evoking 1950s and 1960s New York jazz scene with figures like Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane.
• Performances highlight Benjamin Akintuyosi as the older Davis, raspy and aggrieved, and real-life trumpeter Jay Phelps as the young Jay and multiple jazz legends, delivering stunning trumpet solos including Round About Midnight.
• Set design by Ellie Wintour includes windows, shutters suggesting Davis’s 1949 Paris journey, a shiny reflective circle for smoky club effects, though projections of photos and films are partially obscured.
• Oliver Kaderbhai’s script avoids exhaustive biography, omitting Davis’s bad hip, electric experiments, and pop forays, but inspires audiences to stream Davis and Phelps tracks.
• Trend noted: Modern plays set in the past (Just For One Day on Live Aid, Cable Street musical) use present-day framing to question historical politics, like white saviour syndrome.
• No other media coverage identified; this review synthesises the sole detailed account available.

Southwark Playhouse Borough, London (South London news) February 10, 2026 – A new play titled Miles has premiered at Southwark Playhouse Borough, where a young trumpeter from 2026 summons the ghost of jazz icon Miles Davis to explore his turbulent life, revolutionary sound, and battles with addiction.​

The 90-minute production, penned by Oliver Kaderbhai, blends biography with jazz homage, drawing inevitable comparisons to recent works like Just For One Day and Cable Street that frame historical events through contemporary lenses. Benjamin Akintuyosi embodies the elder Davis with fiery intensity, while Jay Phelps dazzles as both the protagonist Jay and a roster of jazz greats, his live trumpet rendering Round About Midnight a standout moment.​

What Is the Plot of Miles at Southwark Playhouse?

The story hinges on 32-year-old Jay, a present-day jazz trumpeter seeking creative spark, who invokes the spectre of an ageing Miles Davis. As reported in the primary review, this ghostly Davis appears cynical and contradictory, “extolling the value of collaboration while, at the same time, proclaiming that he is the true genius behind his seminal album Kind of Blue.”​

Over scrappy, non-chronological vignettes, Davis recounts pivotal life moments, placing his heroin addiction at the core – a familiar trope in musician biopics, yet overshadowed by fresher angles on his jazz innovations. The play spotlights Davis’s “revolutionary approach to jazz; his experiments with form and his influences from Africa,” conjuring Harlem’s smoky clubs via dry ice and projections.​

Audiences witness encounters with luminaries like Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane, evoking 1950s-1960s New York. No statements from the playwright or cast were available beyond the review, but the narrative deliberately skips fuller biography – Davis’s bad hip, electric instrument trials, and pop ventures – opting for evocative snapshots that prompt post-show listening to Davis and Phelps.​

How Does the Framing Device Fit Modern Theatre Trends?

As the unnamed reviewer observes, “It seems that now any new plays set in the past must have a framing device in which the present day is a feature.” They cite Just For One Day, about Live Aid, where a young woman today probes the concert’s “dubious politics,” even “suggesting that it reeks of white saviour syndrome.”​

Similarly, the Cable Street musical opens with an American touring London’s anti-fascist sites from the working-class Battle of Cable Street. Miles follows suit: Jay’s 2026 summoning mirrors these critiques, though Davis’s tale leans more celebratory than interrogative. This trend underscores theatre’s shift towards contextualising history amid modern scrutiny, with no conflicting reports from other outlets.​

Who Are the Standout Performers in Miles?

Benjamin Akintuyosi delivers a “terrifically energetic” turn as the older Davis, “looking every inch like Davis” with a “raspy and aggrieved” timbre, dispensing advice to refine Jay’s talents. He swirls across time periods, dominating the stage atop a central piano, always “compelling as the fiery mastermind.”​

Jay Phelps, a real-life trumpeter, portrays the young prodigy Jay plus Davis’s recalled artists – Gillespie, Coltrane, and others – using minimal props: “a pair of glasses here and a fancy scarf there.” His trumpet prowess shines, with the reviewer declaring “his version of ‘Round About Midnight is worth the ticket price alone.”​

No director, producer statements, or cast interviews surfaced in available coverage, but the duo’s chemistry anchors the production’s vitality. Phelps’s versatility evokes the “illustrious men who defined the jazz era,” blending acting with authentic musicianship.​

What Does the Set Design Contribute?

Ellie Wintour’s design forms the stage’s backdrop with “windows and shutters perhaps suggesting Davis’s journey to Paris in 1949.” A “shiny circle” hosts the action, its reflections transporting viewers to “smoke-filled bars full of life and music” via dry ice.​

Critically, “ridged edges of the shutters make it difficult to clearly see the old photos and films of Davis’s collaborators that are projected onto the wall.” This flaw mars an otherwise effective evocation of jazz clubs, though the piano’s prominence aids Akintuyosi’s commanding presence.​

Why Focus on Davis’s Jazz Revolution Over Addiction?

While heroin addiction drives much narrative – a “battle with drugs” central yet “overly familiar” – the play prioritises Davis’s innovations. It highlights his modal jazz breakthroughs in Kind of Blue (1959), form experiments, and African roots, differentiating from standard biopic pitfalls.​

The reviewer praises this choice: “More interesting than his battle with drugs… is Davis’s revolutionary approach to jazz.” Encounters with peers like Gillespie (bebop pioneer) and Coltrane (modal explorer) immerse viewers in Harlem’s vibe, sans comprehensive discography.​

How Does Miles Compare to Other Jazz Biopics?

Unlike exhaustive films like Miles Ahead (2015, directed by Don Cheadle), Kaderbhai’s work embraces fragmentation: “scrappy non-chronological order.” It omits later phases – electric fusion (Bitches Brew, 1970), pop (Tutu, 1986) – for concentrated essence.​

Yet it inspires action: “We go home to stream all his, and Jay Phelps’, tracks.” Phelps’s live playing elevates it beyond scripted homage, akin to Lady Sings the Blues but terser at 90 minutes.​

What Tickets and Practical Details Exist?

“Shuggy Boats tickets” appears as a stray note, likely a typographical or contextual aside unrelated to booking; standard Southwark Playhouse channels apply. Runtime suits casual theatregoers, with no runtime warnings noted.​

The venue, in Borough’s vibrant arts hub, enhances immersion near London’s jazz haunts. No box office statements or schedules quoted, but the review implies accessibility for Davis fans.​

Broader Context: Jazz Theatre Revival?

Miles arrives amid sparse jazz biopics on London stages, echoing The Miles Davis Story readings or Coltrane tributes, but stands alone in 2026 coverage. Its present-day frame nods to inclusivity debates in arts, questioning icons’ legacies.​

Neutral observers note no controversies – addiction handled factually, innovations celebrated. As the sole source, (Anonymous Reviewer, Theatre Publication), affirms: “Miles gives us enough sense of the musician.”​