![]() ![]() It makes sense that a show about scrappy, lovable people got a scrappy, lovable production. Many a sleek, ultra-bright British import is guilty of that offense. But - you know what? - too many shows these days are being polished by auteurs until they’re indistinct, textureless blobs. Characters’ entrances and exits feel arbitrary and the stage could be used more dynamically. Believably handled? No.Īnger’s later speech about his own failed b-ball career, part of a crescendo to an emotional ending, is more powerful and fleshes out the character better.Īt times I wished director Steve Broadnax III’s staging, set in the shadow of a billboard on which many locations are projected, was a tad more polished. Anger, for instance, is a college basketball coach and delivers a monologue in which he’s frustrated that one of his players already has an endorsement deal - and a diamond-studded watch - per the new NCAA rules. Some scenes feel hastily written and don’t connect full-throatedly to the big picture. Wisdom, meanwhile, is an African immigrant in his 60s who runs the block’s barbershop, and the magnetic Pritchett lends the play a grounding moral authority. ‘Six’ finally opens on Broadway - and it’s a royal good time In an instant, he’s mad, shy, tickled or piercingly awkward. The performer, who was last on Broadway a decade ago in the shattering Kander and Ebb musical “The Scottsboro Boys,” jumps from emotional extreme to emotional extreme like a kid stomping in puddles. McClendon is an especially fascinating actor to watch. The character stocks fancy grocery store aisles to help support his brother, and all day he’s forced to act chipper for whiny customers who can’t find the kombucha. ![]() Left to right: Tristan “Mack” Wilds, Dyllón Burnside, Forrest McClendon and Da’Vinchi in “Thoughts of a Colored Man.” Julieta CervantesĪs Depression, McClendon hits home the hardest. ![]() “Why is struggle synonymous with being black?” he asks. Happiness just moved to a fabulous high-rise apartment with his boyfriend and feels ostracized from his community because he’s gay and makes good money. ![]() Scott also makes the point that not every person’s life experience in this nabe is the same. Find me a 35-year-old who can’t relate to debt and purposelessness. The 20-year-old is obsessed with no-strings sex, while the lost man in his mid-30s finds life increasingly hard to bear as bills pile up.Īnd that’s what’s most successful about Scott’s writing - his ability to be both street-corner specific and universal at the same time. The men’s names in the script are Passion (Luke James), Love (Dyllón Burnside), Lust (Da’Vinchi), Happiness (Bryan Terrell Clark), Anger (Tristan “Mack” Wilds), Depression (Forrest McClendon) and Wisdom (Esau Pritchett) - don’t worry, they don’t call each other that - and their monickers pair with their ages. With its contentious BK setting and poetic language, “Thoughts” can come across as a Spike Lee joint that has no affiliation to Spike Lee. The production will mark the Broadway debuts for both playwright Scott and director Broadnax.90 minutes. Thoughts of a Colored Man had its world premiere at Syracuse Stage for their 2019-2020 season and transferred to Baltimore Center Stage to finish its regional run. Read 717 reviews from the worlds largest community for readers. Simmons, lighting design by Ryan O’Gara, projection design by Sven Ortel, and sound design by Mikaal Sulaiman. The creative team for Thoughts of a Colored Man includes music by Te’La and Brother Kamau, set design by Robert Brill, co-costume design by Toni-Leslie James and Devario D. By Keenan Scott II, one of today’s boldest new voices, Thoughts of a Colored Man blends spoken word, slam poetry, rhythm, and humor into a daringly universal new play…This richly theatrical mosaic shines brilliant light onto these men, a tight-knit brotherhood, revealing their most triumphant selves.” Tickets for the production will go on sale to the general public on Friday, June 18.Īs described by the production: “As the sun rises on a single day in the pulsing heart of Brooklyn, seven Black men are about to discover the extraordinary – together. 2023 Premiere Dates For New & Returning Series On Broadcast, Cable & Streaming ![]()
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