Displaying items by tag: Black Ensemble Theater

As I neared the Black Ensemble theater, an undeniable sense of eager antcipation pervaded the atmosphere. While I stood there, patiently awaiting the arrival of my companion, I couldn't help but observe the diverse array of theatergoers—people of various ages and ethnic backgrounds,converging from all directions. They were in a hurry, eager to secure their seats for a performance they knew would satisfy their craving for pure, unbridled entertainment. These theatergoers were in for a treat.

 "Taste of Soul," skillfully crafted and directed by the talented Daryl D. Brooks, transcended its modest title. It proved to be an extraordinary event that exceeded all my expectations.Brooks has ingeniously crafted an engaging live cooking show, featuring the dynamic duo of Thee Ricky Harris and the equally remarkable Qiana McNary as the lead chefs. In addition to sharing brief biographies of soul artists, the hosts impart valuable lessons on preparing soul food to the audience. Their camaraderie and delighf ul banter contribute to the overall enjoyable experience.

Harris and McNary are aided by a slew of talented sous chefs. Vincent Jordan, Trequon Tate, Spencer Davis Milford, Catlin Dobbins, Britt Edwards, Makenzy Jenkins, Percy Nesbary III, Laron Jones, and the guy you can’t take your eyes off of when he’s on-stage dancing, Brandon Lewis, bring artists as varied as Aretha Franklin, Barry White, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Simply Red, McFadden & Whitehead, The O’Jays and Gamble & Huff to life.

While the ensemble delivered a powerful performance, it’s important to highlight exceptional individual contributions. Vincent Jordan possesses a timeless stage presence that's truly innate; it's a quality that can't be taught and he undeniably possesses it. Witnessing Percy Nesbary III once again was a pleasure. Earlier this year, I had the chance to see him shine in The Beverly Arts Center's production of "Five Guys Named Moe," alongside Thee Ricky Harris. He stood out then, and he stands out now. His portrayal of Nick Ashford was a joy to watch.

Caitlin Dobbins and Britt Edwards, as the sole women in the ensemble, had the duty of playing most of the women in this show and they rose to the occasion. Edward's “Tina Turner” had all the energy and dances moves of the real Tina. Dobbins with her powerhouse voice would make Gladys Knight proud. Spencer Davis Milford proved soul has nothing to do with ethnicity, giving us a simply beautiful rendition of “Holding Back The Years.”

It goes without saying, Robert Reddrick is the premier Musical Director in Chicago, full stop. The band is the best band I have heard in any theater of any size in any city. Granted, the band overtook some singers, it was hardly noticed because everyone in the audience was singing along.

Marquecia Jordon’s costumes and Keith Ryan wigs effectively created the illusion of the various artist. The fantasized kitchen framed with projections of various artist is the brain child of Set Designer Denise Karczewski. I especially liked the oversized oven, when opened suggesting something hot is coming out. It never disappointed.

The mission of the Black Ensemble Theater is to eradicate racism and its devastating effects on society. What better way to achieve this mission than to invite everybody to the barbecue. If you yearn for entertainment, this is your show. I must warn you, eat before you come, with all the talk about food, Black Ensemble Theater didn’t serve one morsel of food. I really didn’t mind; I left quite full.

When: Through October 15, 2023
Where: Black Ensemble Theater, 4450 N. Clark Street
Running time: 2 hours- with a 15-minute intermission
Tickets: $65. - Seniors $55.
Contact: 773-769-4451

*Extended through October 29th

With MY BROTHER LANGSTON, Black Ensemble Theatre continues its 2022 Season of Excellence: The Season of Healings. This third of four world premiere musicals showcase the power of music to heal. Jackie Taylor, BET’s Founder & CEO, says: “… through these outstanding plays, the spirit of the music, the hope and faith experienced through our stories—we proclaim that Black Ensemble Theater is in the healing business!"

Playwright and director Rueben D. Echoles says of Langston Hughes: “I am honored and grateful to pay tribute to the legacy of such a brilliant and prolific writer”. In My Brother Langston Echoles tells Langston’s life story through his poetry and the evocative music of the age. “T’ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do”, “Take the A Train”, “In my Solitude” and of course “God Bless the Child” are only a few of the songs performed. Poems include Countee Cullen’s “I Have a Rendezvous with Death”, “In the Morning” by Paul Lawrence Dunbar, and “I Sing the Body Electric” by Langston’s idol Walt Whitman. All the rest are by Langston, including gems like “Dreams”, “The Negro Mother”, “Harlem”, and (my personal favorite) “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”. 

Chris Taylor plays Langston, with an ensemble of four portraying the key figures in his life and serving as a Greek chorus. Reneisha Jenkins as Lady Day singing “God Bless the Child” gave me chills, and she is equally brilliant as both Langston’s disinterested mother and devoted grandmother. Nolan Robinson plays Langston’s brother Gwyn, and Andre Teamer is Countee Cullen. De’Jah Jervai completes the quartet, and together they use dance and music to make pure magic.

Langston Hughes, born 1901, was one of the earliest innovators of jazz poetry, and a leader of the Harlem Renaissance.  His writing – prose, poetry, plays – expresses the racial pride and commitment to activism imbued in him by his grandmother. From 1942 to 1962 he wrote a weekly column for The Chicago Defender promoting the emergent civil rights movement.

The use of ‘Brother’ in the title both evokes the racially definitive use of the term, and acknowledges Langston’s close relationship with his half-brother Gwyn. The brothers initially appear quite unequal: Langston is the idolized Big Brother that Gwyn boasts of. But later, as Gwyn consoles a deeply-discouraged Langston, their connection equalizes.

Langston finds his spiritual home in Harlem. He moves to New York to attend Colombia – grudgingly financed by his father – but the bigoted campus is a non-starter against the Cotton Club. There Langston hears Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald… and meets fellow poet Countee Cullen. Biographers may waffle over Langston’s sexuality, but not Echoles! Langston’s relationship with Countee Cullen unmistakably blends Eros and Agape, and Langston is crushed when he returns from a year’s absence to find Countee married. Clearly, both his race and his queerness are intolerable to America’s white supremacy.

I have to say that the best parts were when Langston himself speaks. His poetry is magnificent, and is presented very well, particularly “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”. The music is superbly performed as well by the ensemble. 

The production depends on the musicians: Oscar Brown Jr (guitar), Myron Cherry (drums), Mark Miller (bass), and bandleader Adam Sherrod on keys. Robert Reddrick is musical director, and adroitly intertwines the Jazz Age music and jazz poetry.

Playwright Rueben D Echoles is director, choreographer, and costumes, supported by Pamela Avery as Assistant Director, Jessica Moore as Stage Manager, and Producing Managing Director/Equioty Stage Manager Daryl Brooks. My Brother Langston is a multimedia production utilizing the talents of a full team of designers: DJ Douglas (sound), Denise Karczweski (lighting), Sydney Lynne (set), and Dre Robinson (projection).

My Brother Langston is deeply satisfying on many levels. As they say, “It’s Almost Like Coming to Church”!

Recommended

I’ll let you all in on a little secret: Whenever I’m having a lousy day, I pull up YouTube and take in Mahalia Jackson’s performance of “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” at the 1970 Newport Jazz Festival. This performance is notable, of course, for the special guest who joins Mahalia onstage near the end: Louis Armstrong. It’s also notable for the fact that Satchmo would be dead in less than a year, and Mahalia would join him on “thy kingdom’s shore” in less than two. With that in mind, seeing this musical icon in the last bit of her life not only still in complete control of her stage and her audience (I dare you to find me any rock ‘n’ roll singer from that era, or any era, with such a commanding presence!), but exuding such joy, makes whatever gripes I might be imagining on any given day disappear.

That command, that presence, and that joy that Mahalia spread around the world are on display throughout the Black Ensemble Theater’s current production, Mahalia Jackson: Moving Thru the Light. Written and directed by the theater’s indefatigable, inspired, and inspiring founder, Jackie Taylor, the show is framed as a series of dialogues between a recently deceased Mahalia and a trio of heavenly beings there to welcome her to the afterlife. These scenes are fine — giving the audience biographical information about Mahalia’s life and her relationships both personal and political (MLK, JFK, and RFK, among them) — but mostly act as a breather between the show’s 18 wonderful musical numbers. Because, in a show about one of America’s finest musical talents, the music should be the message, right?

In the role of Mahalia, Robin DaSilva certainly has a large gospel robe to fill. But spread the gospel, she does. DaSilva’s voice is a beautiful instrument, ranging from a rich alto to shimmering highs, emoting pain and, yes, frequently spreading joy. She fills the stage and her vocals fill the theater. Joining DaSilva onstage throughout the show are Cynthia F. Carter, Dwight Neal, and Stewart Romeo as the “Masters,” three heavenly beings welcoming Mahalia to her heavenly reward. Carter charmed last year in the Theater’s tribute to Chuck Berry, and both Neal and Romeo are her equals, the trio’s voices blending effortlessly as they harmonize with Mahalia and with one another. The three also each shine on their own, with Carter’s voice showing quite a range, Neal’s tenor piercing the room, and Romeo’s energy and enthusiasm equaling his vocal prowess. During the show’s first half, an ensemble acts as the story’s narrators, but near the end of the second, they join us in a tribute to Mahalia’s life and music.

And again, it’s the music that is the star of the show. As I said, 18 different songs are featured, and many are the favorites that gospel fans would expect. From “How Great Thou Art” to “How I Got Over,” from “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” to “Precious Lord, Take My Hand,” all of Mahalia’s “hits” are there. The show ends with the crowd singing along to “Down by the Riverside” and “When the Saints Go Marching In.” And near the end of the first act, perhaps DeSilva’s finest performance comes as her Mahalia sings Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” But for me, it’s the tune that ends the first act that filled me with joy. As DaSilva’s Mahalia sings “When my feeble life is o’er” in her rendition of “Just a Closer Walk with Thee,” my heart soared as I was able to spend a beautiful spring Sunday afternoon with the music of this legend and the legions of likeminded fans who’d come to the Black Ensemble Theater to hear it.

Mahalia Jackson: Moving Thru the Light - through April 14th at Black Ensemble Theater.

These days, the antihero has become the new hero. Talented, but tortured. Acclaimed, but complicated. We have gotten to a point in culture where those we place upon pedestals are not just allowed to be, but expected to be, both ingenious and imperfect. And I’m fine with that; seeing my heroes as humans not only makes them more relatable, but more real and much more fascinating.

One of music’s true heroes – and a legend we lost at age 90 in the past year – gets this realistic treatment in Black Ensemble Theater’s Hail, Hail Chuck: A Tribute to Chuck Berry, written by L. Maceo Ferris. That’s not to say that the show, directed by Daryl D. Brooks, isn’t a delightful musical production, because it is. But instead of simply focusing on the beloved songs Chuck Berry left us, we get a look at the man who made the music.

We see Chuck’s childhood as a deacon’s son – which, coming from this son of a preacher man, can lead to a far from perfect adulthood – and his run-ins with the law. We witness a young Chuck struggle against racial inequality, both while touring through the Jim Crow South and right at home in St. Louis, as well as the unfair practices of record labels and managers. But while these episodes might explain the famously curmudgeonly man Mr. Berry became, especially later in life, they do nothing to dampen the pure joy his music brought to the world.

And that music! That rock and roll music!

That music is played, and played perfectly, by a band led by musical director and drummer Robert Reddrick. The band performs above the stage, so we see and appreciate every note, every backbeat. Oscar Brown fires off those licks we all know, those riffs that Chuck invented, with all the virtuosity and attitude you’d desire. Gary Baker and Mark Miller hold it down on rhythm guitar and bass, respectively. And Adam Sherrod is a highlight on keyboards, not just playing the piano parts of Johnny Johnson, but of Jerry Lee Lewis and Fats Domino, as well.

But in front of the band, in front of the mic, is the man. Or men, as we get an older Chuck as narrator, performer, and actor, played by Lyle Miller. Miller’s got the look – the sideburns, the sequined shirts, the pigeon-toed strut – and he’s also got the musical chops, as vocally he kills it. But what he brings most of all is that pure joy. Chuck, despite his difficulties as a man, was always the ultimate performer. And Miller brings that, a twinkle in his eye and a spring in his, admittedly, aged step.

What Chuck might have lost in spryness when he got older, the young Chuck always had, and that is what Vincent Jordan provides us as Berry in his earlier years. A lanky, cocky, duck-walking “black man playing hillbilly music,” Jordan has the confidence that Chuck had, that Chuck had to have, as he played as an underage prisoner, as an unknown in a St. Louis nightclub, and as an unsigned talent at Chicago’s legendary Chess Records. He had it, and he knew it. What I didn’t know, what I couldn’t have known, is that Jordan was a last-minute fill-in for the role, having had only days to learn the part, learn the songs, learn to be Chuck Berry. If he’d prepared his whole life to play Chuck, I’d have applauded Jordan’s performance. But to learn he did so in less than a week, now that’s something special.

Also special is the rest of the cast. As younger and older versions of Chuck’s longtime musical partner and pianist, Johnny Johnson, Rueben Echoles and Kelvin Davis bring humanity and humor. And it’s nice that Ferris’ script works to rectify the decades Johnson spent receiving little to no recognition for his hand in making the man we know as Chuck Berry. Jeff Wright plays two important roles in Chuck’s legend. First, he plays Leonard Chess, the Chicago label owner who made Chuck famous, and himself very wealthy in the process, as well as a sneering, leering Keith Richards, one of many white men who built careers on reworking what Chuck had invented. Dwight Neal was a particular favorite of mine, also handling dual roles. His Muddy Waters howls and growls the 1950s electrified Chicago blues, while his Fats Domino is regal, tickling the ivories to “Blue Monday.”

The rest of the ensemble is impressive, too. Kylah Williams is affecting as Chuck’s loyal and long-suffering wife Themetta. Cynthia Carter brings additional joy and humor each time she graces the stage. And Trequon Tate is great as a late-period Bo Diddley, leading the audience in a singalong.

And that’s what this show is all about, really: the songs, and how the audience loves them, how everyone loves them. Old and young, black and white, nobody could stay still as those frolicking riffs were played and those transporting lyrics were sung. And while Jackie Taylor’s Black Ensemble Theater does look at some of the more honest and serious aspects of Chuck Berry’s life, it is almost impossible to make human the kind of hero, the kind of superhuman who could write those songs and perform them. Hail, hail Chuck Berry. Hail, hail Black Ensemble Theater. And hail, hail rock and roll.

Hail, Hail Chuck: A Tribute to Chuck Berry is being performed at Black Ensemble Theater through April 1st. For more show information, visit blackensembletheater.org.

Josephine Baker leapt from the Harlem Renaissance via the Paris Folies Bergère to become a global phenomenon, the first black international superstar.

Consider this: Baker’s fame was so great in her day among African-Americans, that Coretta King immediately appealed to her to guide the U.S. Civil Rights Movement in the wake of Martin Luther King’s assassination. Born in 1906, Baker died in 1975 - yet she is vaguely remembered, if at all.

Black Pearl: A Tribute to Josephine Baker helps remedy that, ably recounting the trajectory of her stardom. Baker may have lived too big a life character to fit on any stage (she was style-setter, movie star, civil rights activist, even an agent for the French Resistance in World War II) but writer and director Daryl Brooks and the high-energy ensemble cast have gotten enough of the high and low points of her life to build a great show, with special emphasis on her rollicking dancing style.

Two women perform the role of Baker – Joan Ruffin as the Older Josephine largely plays narrator; Aerial Williams - a great dancer and with a lovely voice - is the Younger Josephine.

Baker really did it all – singing, dancing, movies. Arguably Baker was the first global personality, driving fashion trends (her hair style was widely copied), dispensing lifestyle advice in women’s magazines – think Gwyneth Paltrow, Kardashians, Oprah, with a touch of Grace Jones. Baker kept a pet cheetah, and later in life adopted a brood of children from different countries, housing them in the palatial chateau her wealth afforded.

She was first brought to Europe by the French under a government-sponsored cultural program, and became an overnight sensation during a period when France was colonizing Africa. By today’s standards some of her signature performance expressions might not be judged politically correct, but Baker’s artistic influences were segregated minstrel shows, where blacks performed in exaggerated black-face, and jazz-infused free-form dance was the norm.

Her hard-scrabble life of poverty and abuse growing up in St. Louis is captured well in Brook’s script, especially her awakening to music and dance as a teenaged girl. The choreography in Black Pearl (Baker was known by that name) mines Baker’s movies and the historical record to accurately portray contemporary dance styles. To the French, Baker was a genre-busting exotic, as she created a romanticized, imagined portrayal of African natives in their new colonies.

Her famous Banana Dance is carefully rendered on the Black Ensemble stage. Though Europe had its racial and cultural prejudices, it did not have Jim Crow laws like the U.S. – rules that barred Baker from staying at 36 hotels on a return U.S. tour celebrating her global stardom. Her mother had to sit in the balcony section for blacks. Baker renounced her U.S. citizenship and became a French citizen. But on her next U.S. tour she successfully set her contract to require venues to be integrated, and her mother sat in the front row at Carnegie Hall.

As she matured into a style icon, Baker evolved in to a chanteuse, and several of the songs are performed in French during Black Pearl. One show stopper, a transition right before intermission, has Williams’ young Josephine sing a love song to France, with Ruffin’s older Josephine repeating the lyrics in English. It is very affecting.

Like most Black Ensemble productions, the live music backing is excellent, able to swing through all the stylistic periods. The script is occasionally wooded in scenes from later years, but it makes all the points that matter – and keeps the focus on the performance art. Running through June 18, Black Pearl at Black Ensemble Theater is highly recommended.

Just after the show’s beginning, Jackie Taylor asks the crowd what the world needs. In unison, many voices shout back, “Love!”. And when do we need it? “Now!” Love is the theme in Black Ensemble’s latest production, From Jackie with Love (What the World Needs Now), a three-day engagement that centers around loving one another and putting away with senseless violence and racism. Wasting no time getting to the point, Taylor begins the program with an inspired version of the self-explanatory titled “No Matter What Race”, a song that sets the tone for what is to follow. 

For those unfamiliar with Jackie Taylor and her contributions to the Chicago Theatre community, she is the Founder and Executive Director of the Black Ensemble Theater, producing, writing and directing in nearly all its presentations. Prior to her work with Black Ensemble, Taylor, a theatre grad from Loyola University, made her mark on the Chicago stage where she performed at many venues including The Goodman Theater and Victory Gardens Theater. The talented actress also made her presence known in film and television as she was featured in 1976’s Cooley High and later appeared in Barber Shop II, Losing Isiah, Chiraq, Early Edition and The Father Clements Story among several others. 

From Jackie with Love is a production from the heart. Backed up by Black Ensemble’s accomplished band featuring Musical Director Robert Reddrick on drums, Taylors swoops into a collection of songs that are sure to pull the heartstrings of most, each written by hers truly. Throughout the show, Taylor breaks from music giving the audience a peek at her personal life be it by short stories or in the performance of monologues that were meaningful to her from such as A Raisin in the Sun, a play she declares as her “favorite of all time” written by Lorraine Hansberry.

Taylor reminisces about her time as a teacher in the Chicago Public School system, her childhood while living in Cabrini Green and growing up thinking her mother did not love her. She talks passionately about her persistence in moving forward with Black Ensemble even when its outcome seemed bleakest. 

“I am fortunate enough to have spent my life teaching in Chicago Public Schools, at colleges like Loyola University and Roosevelt University and in numerous, numerous programs as an artist teacher,” says Taylor. “Along the way, I created Black Ensemble Theater, raised a wonderfully intelligent daughter and now have the best grandson in the whole wide world.”

Taylor is accompanied on stage by Black Ensemble veterans Rhonda Preston, David Simmons and Yahdinah Udeen who serve as back up vocalists for Taylor and offer friendly banter back and forth. Each is showcased in their own featured number, Preston stunning the crowd with a vocal demonstration for the books in “A Mother’s Love” and Udeen performing an emotionally-charged rendition of “Mother’s Lament”, a moving song that Taylor could write a play about on its own. Simmons closes the second of three sets with the lively number “Happy Ending”. Each are again brought to the forefront towards the end of the show in a piece that has each one, including Taylor, breaking out dance moves.  

All songs performed in From Jackie with Love are written by Jackie Taylor, a couple borrowed from past Black Ensemble productions. As Simmons states about the production, “The show is called From Jackie with Love because it really is from Jackie – all of it – and with tons of love.”

It’s easy to see Taylor’s high level of comfort on stage whether it be singing, dancing, acting, interacting with the audience or even playing guitar – the same one her mother bought for her as a child. The stage is her playground, but more so a tool to bring people together. 

“Through the hundreds of plays that I have produced, written and directed – I never lost my passion for performing,” says Taylor on taking the stage once again. It’s clear the passion is still there along with the talent as she still performs with command.

From Jackie with Love is a nice way to meet the woman behind Black Ensemble, bringing with it a positive message in that life is too short to waste time hating when we can be loving each other. It’s a simple message but powerful as she eludes to the root of the issue being that of money and greed also recognizing the steps that are taken to program our children towards violence at such a young age. A warm tribute is made to the many young black men who have lost their lives – just for being black. Taylor’s message is delivered ever so profoundly in this production that is also sure to entertain with its vast variety of touching songs.

From Jackie with Love (What the World Needs Now) is being performed at The Black Ensemble Theater only for a limited time. For tickets and schedule information click here.

Black Ensemble Theater CEO/Artistic Director Jackie Taylor has yet again brought a story to the forefront that is as entertaining as it is remarkable, this one written by Associate Director Rueben Echoles. Their current production, “My Brother’s Keeper: The Story of the Nicholas Brothers”, is just the latest at Black Ensemble Theater that relives an iconic piece of history that, to some, is lesser known than it should be. If you are not already familiar with the Nicholas Brothers, you will be after this energetic account that is both engaging and visually stimulating. 

Long before Michael Jackson, Gregory Hines, Justin Timberlake, Alvin Ailey, James Brown, Bruno Mars and John Travolta made their mark in the industry, Harold and Fayard Nicholas blazed a trail to which our just mentioned dance heroes would later be greatly influenced and heavily benefit. Cited as the greatest dance team in the 1930’s and 1940’s, The Nicholas Brothers (formerly called The Nicholas Kids) were revolutionaries, creating some of the most complicated and eye-popping routines to date. Best described as high-flying and dynamic, their inventive dance sequences regularly invoked enthusiastic (and fearful) “oohs” and “aahs” from audiences across the world. 

“My Brother’s Keeper” is the captivating story of The Nicholas Brothers’ rise to fame, but it is also the story of love, discipline, hardships and the unbreakable bond between two African American brothers that were not allowed to patronize the clubs in which they performed during their heyday. 

The play is a timeline that follows the brothers from their childhood, to their stardom, to their marriages and through their deaths – Harold in 2000 and Fayard in 2006. We quickly see and are touched by the strong support the two are given by their parents, college-educated musicians that had once performed in their own act. Though never receiving formal dance training outside of his father’s instruction (he was a drummer), Fayard became something of a dance prodigy, eventually teaching his younger siblings. The story flows like a series of waves with its ups and downs, never in danger becoming stagnant. 

Rueben Echoles not only finely directs and choreographs this dazzling musical, he also suits up for the role of younger brother, Harold. Teamed with Rashawn Thompson as Fayard, the two recreate the magic of The Nicholas Brothers with a slew of heart-stopping tap dancing routines that accurately capture the spirit of the famed duo. Shari Anderson plays the brother’s ever-caring mother, Viola, lighting up the stage herself, particularly in her heartfelt rendition of “Master Give Me Strength”. The boys’ father, Ulysses, is warmly played by Dwight Neal while Jessica Seals is strong as little sister, Geri.  

As the show opens, we are taken inside a 1940’s-ish jazz club, at one point becoming the famous Cotton Club in Harlem. The talented musicians play behind band stands on a stage that has several tiers to allow the singers and dancers ample room to perform. Each performer is staged in glitzy costumes of the period, creating an immediate “Wow” factor.  

Musically, this production contains just about everything one could hope for - including a finale that will take one's breath away. Electrifying tap dancing numbers and exceptional vocal performances are worked into a driving soundtrack that includes favorites such as Louis Prima’s “Sing, Sing, Sing”, George Gershwin’s “I’ve Got Rhythm”, Cole Porter’s “From This Movement On”, mixed in with several beautiful pieces created for the show by Rueben Echoles. We also get a taste of Cab Calloway, whose commanding stage entrance, while donned in his trademark white suit, brings with him the excitement of an era that was ever so rich in music and originality. Vincent Jordan crushes it as Calloway, “Hidee-hidee-hidee-ho-ing” along with the crowd throughout his lively version of “Minnie the Moocher”. The polished performances by cast members in this show are endless, but make no mistake – Rueben Echoles and Rashawn Thomas are on a tier of their own, their vocal contributions, fancy footwork and “stunt dancing” as I would call it, just extraordinary. 

Though centered around the bond between The Nicholas Brothers and their plight to greatness, one story line in the show that some might find particularly interesting is that of Harold’s marriage to Dorothy Dandridge and the many challenges that take place between the two. A relationship sometimes blissful, but often turbulent, we feel a strong sense of love as much as we do regret. The show also delves into Dandridge’s life as a celebrity and the racial obstacles she had to overcome. Taylay Thomas is absolutely stunning as Dandridge and sings the part flawlessly. 

In “My Brother’s Keeper”, Jackie Wilson gives us another history lesson that so well amalgamates importance with entertainment. Wilson has brought several fine works to Black Ensemble Theater in the past including “The Jackie Wilson Story”, “Marvin Gaye Story”, “The Other Cinderella” and “Dynamite Divas”. Jackie Taylor has always had a propensity to bring music-filled productions to Black Ensemble, once profoundly citing music as a tool that can cross cultural barriers and bring people together in their mission to eradicate racism. Perhaps we need that now more than ever. Theater goers will have the chance to see Taylor sing and dance during a three-day engagement March 6th-8th in “From Jackie with Love”, a work that embraces her upbringing in Cabrini Green and her dealings with a dysfunctional family life.  

Recommended as show the entire family can enjoy, “My Brother’s Keeper: The Story of the Nicholas Brothers” is being performed at Black Ensemble Theater through March 26th. For tickets and/or more show information, click here. 

Black Ensemble has a fun-packed season ahead that includes the productions “Black Pearl: The Josephine Baker Story” and “Sammy: The Story of Sammy Davis Jr.”.

Singer Jackie Wilson was one of America’s great pop songwriters and vocalists. A vibrant production of The Jackie Wilson Story at the Black Ensemble shows, tells, and sings his story in a celebration that shakes the rafters.

This version of The Jackie Wilson Story is even more exciting as an upgrade over the original, in the caliber of the staging and music - which take full advantage of the Black Ensemble’s 299-seat main stage, opened in 2011. The awesome Black Ensemble Theater Musicians give full expression to the developing musical styles over the course of Wilson’s career, from the early 1950s (he first recorded what became a signature classic, “Danny Boy,” with Dizzy Gillespie in 1952) through 1968’s “Your Love Keeps Lifting Me Higher,”  with big hits including "Doggin, Me Around" and "To Be Loved."

Though I came of age in the 1960s, I didn’t realize how familiar Wilson’s work is to all of us - until I saw the original release of  The Jackie Wilson Story in 2000. A breakout hit for Black Ensemble Theater, that production spawned a national tour that culminated in a run at the Apollo Theatre in New York City.  After seeing it I ran out and bought his records, listening to them non-stop for weeks. That’s how good he is.

 A challenge for an actor portraying Wilson is measuring up musically. Kelvin Roston, Jr. has Jackie Wilson nailed musically, but he is neither a mimic nor impersonating: he is acting. Roston is a damn fine singer, to be sure – but he is an actor first, and to us, he is Wilson on that stage.

The real Jackie Wilson wooed the women in the audience; Roston does the same, in real time – with a nod and a wink that we are watching a master performer deftly be both in the role, and beside it. When his wife Freda reaches the end of her rope with his philandering, Roston's rendition of  "Lonely Teardrops" (recorded in 1958) is a not just a great performance, it is a full throttle emotive expression of Wilson's plea for her to stay.

While Freda doesn't sing, Jackie Wilson's mother does - by way of explaining his musical chops. And in this production, Wilson's mother Eliza (Kora Green) is even a better singer than Roston's Wilson. (You can probably check out Wikipedia to see if that were true in real life.)

Along with the musical backing, Black Ensemble Theater's troupe has expanded, and this show features a dozen singing, dancing performers. Direoce Junirs demonstrates quite a range as Freda's angry father in coveralls, and later a fay stage manager. Reuben Echoles stands out as B.B., Wilson's confidant and manager. 

The sets (Denise Karczewski) also deserve a mention: the neutral backdrop puts in relief the spare placement of mid-century modern furniture, with fabrics and colors spot-on from the period.  (There might be a less cumbersome way to show the big hospital bed in which Wilson lingered for nine years before he died - it rolls in and out repeatedly.)

While there are some frayed edges in the original script (the dialog is laced with exposition of the background, which makes for some wooden exchanges) one could make the case that the times have caught up with the style. This recount of the high points in Jackie Wilson’s biography are more like a graphic novel than a conventional drama. Real people’s lives don’t usually fit neatly into dramatic packaging.

The final wow is a number I had forgotten about, one of Wilson's greatest songs: O Danny Boy. That cross-cultural standard, a plaintive Celtic lament, is sung by a ghostly Wilson as the story closes. Recorded in 1965, it never fails to bring tears to this Irishman. 

In that sense, The Jackie Wilson Story also fulfills a bigger mission: reminding us of the greatness of Wilson’s singing and performances, and that great music helps bridge wide cultural gaps among us. Highly recommended, it runs through September 4, 2016 at the Black Ensemble Theater, 4450 N. Clark St. in Chicago.

Black Ensemble Theater does it again, and by that I mean provides a thoroughly engaging and inspirational experience, this time with their latest production Those Sensational Soulful 60’s. Beautifully written and directed by the talented Jackie Taylor, Soulful 60’s takes a peek at the heyday of Motown music featuring music from Otis Redding, Mary Wells, The Temptations, Aretha Franklin, Jackie Wilson, The Supremes, The Four Tops and many more. Currently running in repertory with Doo Wop Shoo Bop (also written by Taylor but this one in collaboration with Jimmy Tillman), Those Sensational Soulful 60’s is a dance-in-your-seat musical treat that is uplifting as it is nostalgic. 

It is Black Ensemble Theater’s 40th anniversary and there is little question as to why they have succeeded for so long. Churning out one memorable production after another, Soulful 60’s is yet another triumph for this ultra-talented theatre company. Black Ensemble has always had a gift of not just bringing relevant music back to the forefront (and also writing worthy originals), but also delivering it in a way that captures its true essence, giving audience members the chance to feel the way they did when they first discovered these golden classics. Those Sensational Soulful 60’s is no different. 

A truly gifted cast helps in bringing the iconic sixties back to life. Melanie McCullough, Shari Anderson, Kylah Frye and Jessica Seals round up the inspiring group of women contributing to this production while David Simmons, Kenny Davis, Rashawn Thompson, Theo Huff and Kyle Smith take on the male vocals with the power and passion to which Otis Redding himself would be pleased. The vocal additions by each performing member cannot be compliment enough. Of course, the other half of the fun is watching the performers move – and move they do. Well-choreographed and well-executed, we are treated to several high energy dance routines, combining a rawness and precision that is thoroughly entertaining to watch, and gives one the feeling that they could easily be sitting in on a Four Tops concert in 1963. 

With “soul” as the production’s focal point, the ensemble even succeeds at honoring standard crooners Sammy Davis Jr. and Frank Sinatra and jazz legend Ella Fitzgerald, explaining they should be included due to the soulful nature of some of their material. Even a soulful rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” is performed – as Patti LaBelle!   

Kyle Smith starts the show off with a heartfelt reminiscence on Same Cooke – yep, a Chicagoan – and though he died at just thirty-three-years-young, left us with such influential songs such as “Chain Gang”, “Twisting the Night Away” and “You Send Me”. As the show progresses cast members point out interesting factoids about each artist to whom they pay homage. Touching on so many individuals that helped shape music as we know if today, the show is an apropos tribute to a magical and persuasive time in music history.  

Standing ovations frequent the show after several numbers and they are well-deserved. It is apparent the cast members are having as much fun as the audience is having watching them, which adds a genuineness that cannot be manufactured. The songs are certain crowd pleasers with a collection that includes such hits as “Try A Little Tenderness”, “Feel Good”, Mack the Knife”, “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” and “Higher and Higher”, each and every performer making their mark on many different occasions each time they uniquely honor a soul icon. With many wardrobe changes to highlight each moment, the dazzling costumes and wigs used are not only stunning, they depict the era accurately.    

Those Sensational Soulful 60’s is not only musically entertaining, it is also funny, as writer Jackie Taylor skillfully plant bits of humor throughout the show, including a happy-go-lucky Stevie Wonder being escorted back to his place on stage and a handful of sassy one-liners exchanges.     

Finely-tuned and rich in both quality and quantity, the family-friendly production of Those Sensational Soulful 60’s is being performed at Black Ensemble Theatre, located at 4450 N. Clark Street, through March 19th. This is a show that will not just have you toe-tapping and clapping from beginning to end, it also serves as a valuable lesson in music history. For tickets and/or more show information, visit www.BlackEnsembletheater.org. 

Here is a theater event that is so rich you cannot be disappointed. Anyone who attends Dynamite Divas: A Tribute to Women in Soul will be richly rewarded by the experience. In fact, it is so good, I would say run, don't walk, to the Black Ensemble theater to see it. (It runs through January 24.)

The premise of the play is self-admittedly thin: African-American multi-billionaire Mr. Maurice (Rueben D. Echoles, who directs, choreographs and designed costumes) has paid $2.5 million to each of four grande dames of soul - Nancy Wilson (Rhonda Preston), Gladys Knight (Rashada Dawan), Roberta Flack (Melanie McCullough), and Aretha Franklin (Shari Addison, a real show-stealer) - who are to spend the day preparing for and then performing in a television special. 

Why just these four? Well, Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross, and Tina Turner were considered - but schedule conflicts kept them away. Besides, these four personalities are probably the only compatible mix, as we discover in the course of the show.

Why put on such a show? Mr. Maurice, who claims to have earned his wealth through his inventions  (e-mail, texting, touch-screens, and Botox!), wants to celebrate the musical accomplishment of these remarkable singers.

These actresses' divas, as personified by these exceptional performers, capture not just the singing style, but also the personalities of their real-life counterparts. And they, too, are mystified by Mr. Maurice's circumstances and motive.  "A black billionaire we've never heard of?"

While the set-up is ridiculous, the music, and the performers, are anything but. In his performance as Mr. Maurice, Rueben Echoles sets the stage with such an abundance of energy, that he truly casts a spell across the audience, forcing the room into a complete suspension of disbelief. That is theater! (And I don't say that lightly, after four decades in the audience.)

Though well paid, these divas - in their 70's - need to be coaxed to sing at first. An extra $50,000 finally breaks the ice, and Gladys Knight lets loose with "I've Got to Use My Imagination," her 1973 hit with the Pips. This offers an inkling of what is to come: Rashada Dawan captures that teary edge to Gladys Knight's voice throughout the night, and replicates the original convincingly - with the added power of being there live.

Now that the audience knows what to listen for, the next plot turn packs a punch using the Assimilator, a kind of holographic transporter used to call up greats of the past. First a phantasm of Billie Holiday alights on the stage and performs, really channels, Holiday's "God Bless the Child" - followed by almost equally powerful impersonations of Dinah Washington ("The Bitter Earth") and Nina Simone ("Mississippi Goddam.")

As Mr. Maurice convinces each Diva to sing - beginning with first hits, and other career high points - the other three sing back-up. Music fills the 299-seat stage for what turns out to be a very short 2-1/2 hour run.

While each of these leading ladies is a powerful performer, and ably capture the singing style and phrasing of their diva, it is Shari Addison who most often seizes control of the stage - befitting her role as Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. As the most familiar personality, Franklin gives Addison more to work with. But in McCullough's Flack singing "Killing Me Softly;" or in Preston's Wilson doing the signature "Guess Who I Saw Today," to cite two examples, the stage, and the listeners, belong to those performers.

There are also live performances or video tributes to many other notables - Chaka Khan, Mary Wells, Patti Labelle - the list goes on. Beyonce Knowles also crashes the event, in person, asking why she isn't included in the diva pack, earning a dismissive retort from Aretha: "Do you think they will be singing 'Single Ladies' in 20 years? She also tells Beyonce, "We love your music, at least some of it."

With a rich supporting cast that includes Mr. Maurice's technicians Donald Craig Manuel (as Hubert) and Kyle Smith (as Youngblood), Dynamite Divas thrives on its six-man, all-star band: music director Robert Reddrick on drums, Justin Dillard on keyboard, Mark Miller on bass, Gary Baker on guitar, Dudley Owens on woodwinds, and Bill McFarland on trombone. These guys were versatile and solid as they ran through the years and genre of the divas. Backing Rhonda Preston's Nancy Wilson on "Guess Who I Saw," the performance was "live recording" quality.

Dynamite Divas: A Tribute to Women of Soul at the Black Ensemble Theater comes very highly recommended.