Malakai M Bayoh first walks on stage as Oberto in a Puritan-inspired school uniform and a cross-the-shoulder messenger bag. He’s cleverly holding up a “Missing” poster. His character is searching for his father whom, unbeknownst to Oberto, the enchantress Alcina has turned into a lion.
Bayoh is confident and consistent on stage. In the first interval, Bayoh can be seen walking through the main foyer of the Royal Opera House, handing out “Missing” posters and asking audience members if they’ve seen his father.
So what on earth would cause someone to shamefully heckle him?
The heckler’s behaviour was inappropriate and wrong.
Bayoh was skilfully and passionately singing Oberto’s aria in Act Two, when a heckler from the balconies began shouting.
What first began as a series of startling “boo’s,” continued. Someone seated next to the man attempted to stop him, hushing, shouting “stop,” and, from what could be seen in the dark theatre, trying to restrain him. The heckler persisted.
I refuse to put into writing what the heckler said in full.
Instead, let’s talk about Bayoh as a remarkable young performer.
At the start of the aria, Bayoh was lost in his singing, facing into the spotlight, singing with the tender sweetness of a boy roughly 12.
In the face of obnoxious and unwelcome heckling, Bayoh remained on stage and sang the aria to completion. Impressively, the quality of his singing remained unchanged—equally as captivating.
Upon completion, the audience erupted in applause, cheers, whistles, and shouts loud enough to drown out the heckler.
Bayoh returned as Oberto throughout Acts II and III. (Though, according to Royal Opera House, the heckler will not return—he’s been permanently banned.)
At curtain call, Bayoh received the most enthusiastic applause of the night.
Malakai M Bayoh as Oberto was a triumph. His debut on the Royal Opera House stage was superb. And, even more admirable, Bayoh exhibited an awe-inspiring level of composure, professionalism, and showmanship.
May we be lucky enough to see Bayoh on stage for many more performances in the coming years.
Read my full review of Alcina here.
London Show Cap 
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