Displaying items by tag: FleetwoodJourdain Theatre

My first impression was, naturally, of the set: a stunning mural by Sholo Beverly in shades of blues and grays, the only color the red white & blue of an American flag. A series of posters were hung from the ceiling, from an announcement of a slave auction through Emancipation, the Civil Rights era and up to a headline from Obama’s first election.

1619 is the story of a journey made by an entire people: embarked upon involuntarily, maintained brutally, perpetuated coercively, and endured bitterly. Portions of the journey became gradually more volitional and intentional, e.g. the Great Migration between 1910 and the 1970s. But even that movement, though Isabel Wilkerson calls it an act of individual and collective agency, was neither truly spontaneous nor discretionary, but in response to the horrors of Jim Crow.

The journey was narrated by three individuals: playwright Ted Williams III, choreographer Marchello Lee, and Shannon Stiles, with four additional actors performing simultaneous enactments: Nicole Ross, Vanessa Love, Lucy Maura, and Ozivell Eckford, who was even more amazing on the West African hand drum as with the contemporary drum set onstage.

1619 is titled for the date that the privateer ship White Lion landed at Point Comfort [sic], Virginia, bearing 20-30 enslaved African people, who were traded by the ship’s chandler for supplies. The agonizing first scenes depicted the arrival of these terrified and traumatized people, and their sale as chattel. Indentured servitude was common in the seventeenth century, largely indigent white Europeans who were enslaved for as long as their indenture proscribed and then returned to their lives as free men. Enslaved Africans held no such contract; they were chattel slaves – property of their owners, as were their children, thus assuring an ongoing and self-renewing (organic and 100% pure; not a speck of cereal) supply of workers on whose backs the American South would build its empire of cotton, tobacco, rice, and indigo.

Our interpreters lead us to Juneteenth 1865, heralding the Emancipation Proclamation which, though flawed and limited, offered putative freedom to enslaved African workers. However, as one freedman stated, “we colored people did not know how to be free, and white people did not know how to have free colored people around them.” The result, of course, was mutual hostility and widespread mistrust, which has persisted to this day – 400 years, as Stiles repeatedly emphasized in her laments.

Stiles was superb, representing the anger, iron will, and exhaustion of Black women throughout history. The other two chroniclers debated in the hip-hop song Booker T or W.E.B.:  Williams made Washington’s accommodationist arguments while Lee aligned himself with W.E.B. DuBois, arguing for activism and reparations. I must admit this is where I began parting company with 1619 myself; attempts were made throughout to represent the virtues of both schools of thought but … see, I was 8 when Reverend King, with Bayard Rustin, Philip Randolph and 249,997 of their closest friends, Marched on Washington. There was, naturally, an article in Newsweek about it, with a sidebar specifically about the “I have a dream” speech. My mother cut that page out of the magazine and gave it to me, saying, “Keep this and remember this man. He’s a great man; he’ll go far.”  I still have that clipping in my childhood scrapbook, with the report cards and other memorabilia. Just sayin’—I’ve reverenced Dr King all my life, but at heart I’m more of a Malcolm sort of girl. Takes all types, n’est ce pas? And 1619 was written to speak to all types.

The music was amazing, comingling hip-hop, jazz, blues, spirituals, wonderful West African drumming by Ozivell Eckford and eight original songs. Marchello Lee’s choreography was marvelous, and masterfully danced by all players: Williams, Lee, and Stiles, with Eckford, Nicole Ross, Vanessa Love, and Lucy Maura. I think it was cool to see the playwright and choreographer on stage with the others; and Williams showed himself to be the consummate multi-tasker by also co-directing, with Fleetwood-Jourdain’s Artistic Director Tim Rhoze.

What didn’t quite work for me was the story sequence, despite the raconteurs. I lost the linear coherence somewhere between Abraham Lincoln and Rosa Parks, and found it difficult to reconnect, though I knew the chronicle fairly well myself.

I applaud Williams’ optimism, but I honestly can’t share it. The final song, about I See the Chains are Gone, wasn’t so much inaccurate as precocious; what event or circumstances does Williams see, present or forthcoming, that will actualize this change? The groundswell following George Floyd’s murder was squelched by a virus, and the many many subsequent murders have failed to revive that spark. Personally, I fear Williams may need to write an epilogue after November.

I was disappointed (though not surprised) at the audience: gratifyingly numerous and responsive, but overwhelmingly pale. True, this is Evanston, but the production was co-sponsored by Evanston Public Library and Northwestern University which, last time I checked, had no race restrictions in their admissions policies.  One hopes the NU Office of Neighborhood and Community Relations (the entity actually collaborating with Fleetwood-Jourdain) will put out some fliers.

Williams states in his biographical blurb that he ‘lives to inspire’. I wouldn’t necessarily call 1619 inspirational, but … let’s say it’s a safe production to recommend to your more ‘un-woke’ friends with reasonable confidence that they will learn something without being scared away. And the show is worth the time simply for the singing and dancing!

1619: THE JOURNEY OF A PEOPLE plays at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons through June 30.

RECOMMENDED

Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre's 2024 season of four productions will open with the original musical 1619: THE JOURNEY OF A PEOPLE by Chicago writer and performer Ted Williams III. The musical commemorates the arrival of the first 20 Africans on the shores of Point Comfort, Virginia on August 20, 1619. In it, three modern characters lead audience members on a journey through multiple performance pieces, leaving viewers both inspired and challenged about the progress of America's African sons and daughters. This production uses various musical forms including hip-hop, jazz, and blues, to commemorate the struggle for survival and equality and to celebrate the stories and journeys of America's African sons and daughters. FJT is partnering with Evanston Public Library and Northwestern University for this production. 1619: THE JOURNEY OF A PEOPLE will play Saturdays and Sundays from June 15-30, 2024, with the press opening on Sunday, June 16 at 3 pm.
 
Performances will be Saturdays at 7:00 pm and Sundays at 3:00 pm, at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre in the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 Noyes St., Evanston. Tickets are $30.00 and are on sale now at www.fjtheatre.com. Additionally, 2024 Premium Gold Member Cards, good for all three 2024 summer and fall play productions and A MOODY EXPERIENCE: MUSIC BEYOND THE MARGINS, are now on sale for a very limited time for only $90 - a nearly 30 percent discount off of the regular season ticket prices.
 
LISTING INFORMATION
 
1619: THE JOURNEY OF A PEOPLE
A Musical by Ted Williams III
Directed by Tim Rhoze and Ted Williams III
This is a co-production with Evanston Public Library and Northwestern University
June 15-30, 2024
Saturdays at 7 pm, Sundays at 3 pm
Press opening Sunday, June 16 at 3 pm
Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre in the Noyes Cultural Arts Center
927 Noyes St., Evanston
Tickets $32.00, on sale now at www.fjtheatre.com
Phone 847-866-5914
 
From the beginning of American slavery to Reconstruction, the Great Migration, the Civil Rights Era, and modern movements for justice, 1619 packs generations of history into an amazing musical theater experience that traces the African American journey toward freedom and equality.

OBAMA-OLOGY is about privilege, as experienced and explored by Warren, a young gay Black man, recently graduated from college who takes a job with the 2008 Obama campaign. He arrives in a near-frenzy of excitement, but his ardor rapidly shrivels in the bleak streets of East Cleveland. Warren, ably played by David Guiden, is bewildered at the other volunteers’ indifference – even hostility – to his college education.

Warren is mystified at his volunteer peers’ indifference to his accomplishments, and only gradually does he become aware of the hierarchy he unconsciously assumes – with himself, naturally, at the top of the food chain. Guidan’s depiction of Warren’s grossly overblown excitement when one of his recruits shows up at volunteer headquarters is brilliantly acted. Still, we fully understand Cece’s hesitancy. Warren’s shock at finding her ‘functionally illiterate’ further alienates her; we’re impressed that she hangs in so long, and almost relieved when she drops out after Warren’s offer to fix her with adult literacy classes.

Scenic Designers Tim Rhoze and Evan Sposato choose bright colors for a seemingly simple set design that is surprisingly versatile. Stage/House Managers Barbara Reeder and Lexx Dyer use it very effectively to punctuate the brief, rapidly moving scenes, assisted by Lighting and Sound Designers Michael Rourke and Daniel Etti-Williams. Simple announcements, (e.g., “campaign headquarters”) keep us grounded in time and space. Casting director Lynn Baber selects a small (and excellent) cast: David Guiden is Warren, with all other characters beautifully played by Chris Jensen, Tuesdai B. Perry and Em Demaio. Baber’s costumes help us tell one character from another, but this differentiation is largely accomplished by the actors’ skill and the excellent direction by Fleetwood-Jourdain’s Artistic Associate Bria Walker. I admit I arrived at the theatre ten minutes late (damn the Red/Purple Line Howard Station balls-up!); still, I very quickly caught up with what character(s) were currently onstage.

OBAMA-OLOGY is billed as a comedy and there were indeed some hilarious moments: the local volunteer trainee whose idea of outreach runs along the lines of ‘Yo! Niggah! Git yer black ass to the polls!’, and the aggressively ‘woke’ couple who address other volunteers as ‘sistah soldier’. Excellent acting makes these scenarios truly droll without descent into slapstick. OBAMA-OLOGY is also advertised as drama; there are definitely some dramatic scenes, particularly those involving Warren’s parents exiling their queer son. My companion is into neologisms and called OBAMA-OLOGY a ‘dramedy’, but I would have liked it better if it had been one or the other.

OBAMA-OLOGY’s primary appeal for me was its portrayal of how easy it is to oversimplify the deeply complex phenomenon of privilege in our society. Wikipedia says of playwright Aurin Squire: Many of Squire's plays revolve around multiracial societies in transition or America's changing cultural make-up. His work reflects the Latino, African, Caribbean, African American, and Jewish cultures he grew up around in South Florida. Given this heritage, I’m disappointed at how superficially Squire (through Warren) approaches the critical issue of racial hierarchy in America.

When Warren is told, he must speak to people on their level, he not only cheapens that to speaking in Ebonics but, more importantly, clearly views it as a descent for him. His reaction to Cece’s literacy – the urge to ‘fix’ her – is so very white! Only near the end, when he and his partner endure a traffic stop, does Warren begin to get the memo about black and white in East Cleveland. That vignette could have been crucial, but it’s demeaned by its vanilla outcome. True, OBAMA-OLOGY was written in 2014, pre-George Floyd, but not pre-Rodney King! The play’s ending is equally classic white fairy tale: Cece has (1) gotten her GED, (2) gotten a job, and (3) gotten pregnant – and this is meant to be a happy ending! There a thousand far more interesting things Squire could have done with Cece.

I don’t much care for comedy; I chose OBAMA-OLOGY because shows I’ve previously seen at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre were exceptional, and I will continue to watch the Fleetwood-Jourdain’s seasons hoping for more. OBAMA-OLOGY was light, pleasant, and fairly funny, but definitely not thought-provoking.

Through June 25th at Fleetwood-Jourdain at the Noyes Cultural Center. For tickets and/or more show information, click here. 

You know that breathless moment of silence after the curtain falls and before the applause begins? That moment doesn’t happen often, and it always indicates a truly extraordinary performance. That silence occurred Sunday night as the stage of AMERICAN SON at Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre went black: we all sat stunned for just a moment before erupting into a standing ovation.     

AMERICAN SON was written by Christopher Demos-Brown in 2018 but in today, post-George Floyd et al, it’s even more relevant and impactful. The plot is simple: a bi-racial teenager has had some sort of run-in with the police. His parents, separated only a few weeks, meet at the police station seeking information about their child. In this charged atmosphere the estranged couple confront the dissolution of their marriage and the challenges of raising a biracial son in a privileged community.

Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre Artistic Director Tim Rhoze directs AMERICAN SON with compassion and finesse. The theatre has no actual curtain, giving us ample time to examine the set designed by Rhoze with Technical Director Evan Sposato.  Nondescript institutional furniture is rigidly arranged against a striking backdrop of abstract graphics painted in grey tones with ominous splashes of red.  Huge enigmatic faces have a distinct tribal vibe, infusing every word and movement with racial significance.   

It's a small cast and all four actors are superb. Michael Manocchio brings a sense of uncertainty and vulnerability to the role of Officer Larkin, whose unenviable task it is to placate the parents with meager scraps of sketchy information.  The mom describes him as ‘a low-level flunkey who’s not too bright”.  His subconscious racism is transparent to us, as in his fumbling attempt to bond with the father by “speaking badge to badge” while sweating it out until the all-knowing Detective Stokes turns up. 

Detective Stokes, impeccably played by Darren Jones, finally arrives, positively bristling with authority but without much additional information. Though he maintains his rigid professional preeminence with the frantic parents, occasional glimpses of well-concealed humanity unavoidably break through.

The central characters are the parents, Scott (Darren Andrews) and Kendra (Alexandra Moorman). Andrews plays Scott as the prototypical affluent White Male, reeking of privilege and self-importance. Scott believes his marriage proves he’s unprejudiced, but his subliminal racism inevitably breaks through with words like ‘uppity’. Yet Andrews’ treatment of Scott’s vulnerable moments are equally credible and satisfying. There is a lovely scene where Scott and Kendra review the issues they agree on – Thelonious Monk and sex, basically. Scott is not likeable, but we can’t help being moved as he tenderly recalls the happiest day of both their lives: the day their son was born.   

I saw Alexandra Moorman a month ago in What to Send Up When It Comes Down” at Lookingglass. She was phenomenal there, but as Kendra she purely took my breath away. At several points, starting with the first five minutes of the play, Moorman is alone, and fills the stage with her consummate presence. She maintains this aspect throughout, managing to enrich the other performances without eclipsing them. I noted this same quality in What to Send Up: a troupe production, but Moorman’s genius can’t help but show.  Her light will penetrate any bushel … and besides, she’s gorgeous! 

The production crew is vital in creating such an awesome production. Director Tim Rhoze and Technical Director Evan Sposator both double as co-Set Designers. Name coincidence is good for David Goodman-Edburg and David Goode as Lighting and Sound Designers, respectively. Bria Walker is Dramaturg, Production Stage Manager is Barbara Reeder, and Lynn Baber costumes the characters with penetrating character discernment.

I don’t often add VERY to my rating, but AMERICAN SON is VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED