Commissioned by Manhattan Theatre Club through the Bank of America New Play Program and now in its world-premiere engagement at Off-Broadway’s New York City Center, Dakar 2000, written by Pulitzer Prize finalist and former Peace Corps volunteer Rajiv Joseph, follows the brief connection of two US citizens of different ages and ethnicities in Senegal, based on real people and actual events experienced by the playwright. Or is it? Part spy story and part reflection on Y2K and the concern that it would trigger the Apocalypse, the two-hander memory play, told from the perspective of a PCV who met a State Department operative at the US Embassy following an accident that flipped his truck, is filled with cunning, deceit, hidden motives, and manipulation that will make you wonder what’s true and who can be trusted in this complex cat-and-mouse game.
The go-back story is introduced in direct address to the audience by the narrator and protagonist Boubs, some 25 years after the incident at the turn of the new millennium, and is then presented in a series of reenacted scenes and evasive conversations. We find out that, after the crash, dousing his injured head with a bottle of liqueur to avoid infection, and getting stitched and bandaged at the local hospital, he winds up in the office of the 46-year-old Dina. Her initial investigation into the accident soon transitions into an interrogation about some US government supplies that he, as “a kid who just wanted to make a difference,” illegally misappropriated for use in a community garden, which is her real purpose for the meeting. Or is it?
Their interactions in the office are filled with half-truths and outright deceptions on both sides (Did he really swerve his vehicle to avoid hitting a cat in the road, and was he really not drinking the alcohol he had with him? Is she really who she appears to be, or has she brought him there for another more covert reason?). She seems to develop a liking for the apparently ingenuous 25-year-old and offers him a way out of his legal troubles and the threat of deportation by having him secure the signatures and fingerprints of those involved in the garden project.
The two agree to meet at a bar for him to deliver the completed paperwork, which sets off an unlikely romantic flirtation and leads to them telling each other silly fabricated stories on which they laughingly call each other out, followed by a rendezvous on his rooftop, another unconsummated get together in her hotel room, and the cunning Dina, who finally admits her actual position and intent, enlisting him to carry out a vengeful mission that might not turn out to be exactly what she says it is.
Under the intentionally enigmatic direction of May Adrales, the 80-minute intrigue, punctuated with touches of humor, stars Abubakr Ali as the somewhat goofy and seemingly gullible Boubs and Mia Barron as the seasoned and commanding Dina, who go head-to-head repeatedly over two days and nights of sly maneuvers and subterfuge. The plot line and characterizations offer not only some surprising revelations but also a study in human psychology, as their actions lead to a startling climax and an unexpected conclusion, delivered by the older Boubs in a present-day direct-address update on where it all led him.
A rotating set by Tim Mackabee visually parallels the twists and turns of the story, with projections by Shawn Duan that indicate the times and places of the scenes. Costumes by Emily Rebholz and hair and make-up by Tommy Kurzman are suited to the ages, ethnic identities, and stations of the characters, and Alan C. Edwards’ lighting and sound by Bray Poor augment the dark and often shocking events.
All the intrigue and duplicity, thirst for revenge, guileful indifference to the truth, absence of empathy for others and “collateral damage” to the innocent in Dakar 2000 leave us wondering if 2000 truly was the beginning of the Apocalypse. It’s a theme that resonates in the current state of our country, the world, and humanity.
Running Time: Approximately 80 minutes, without intermission.
Dakar 2000 plays through Sunday, March 23, 2025, at MTC, performing at New York City Center, Stage 1, 131 West 55th Street, NYC. For tickets (priced at $79-99, including fees), go online.
