Planet Earth Theatre & Black Theatre Troupe's Insurrection at Planet Earth Theatre
(out of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 3/20/99
(out of )Black Theatre Troupe and Planet Earth Theatre are out to make a statement. The tone of the evening starts as you step through the doors of Planet Earth's black box stage, which has been painted, walls and floor, an incendiary red. The audience is immediately segregated, with African American patrons asked to sit on the right, and whites on the left. Stick with the instructions, as the play uses this segregation to a theatrical advantage. Soon, Director Mike Traylor drops us into Robert O'Hara's delirious and disturbing world of black and white.
Ron is a homosexual African American earning his Ph.D. in Slave
Studies from Columbia. His still-living great-great grandfather,
a 198 year-old former slave, T.J., is his spirit guide through
the Nat Turner slave insurrection. Through a nightmare landscape
trot all of the symbols and caricatures of racism, from abusive
motorcycle cops to sheet-clad crackers to stereotypically portrayed
blacks as pimps and pushers. At the center is Ron and T.J.'s bonding,
and the discovery of Ron's birthright; to carry the scars of the
abuse of his race. Despite the heavy sentiments of the show, there's
a surprising amount of humor, which the blacks in the audience
recognized immediately, and the whites warmed to eventually.
The production, and Mr. Traylor's direction, is rough. This is
not a polished presentation, and part of its charm is its guerilla
theatre-feel, which allows for the humor and power to flourish.
Only three of the actors are required to play one role apiece,
and the rest move from white to black, good to bad, in a make-believe
way that is bumpy, but effective. Mr. Traylor's use of "colorblind"
casting also works with the piece, including a white and a Hispanic
to portray all colors. While the piece is sometimes confusing,
and often sloppy, it is also obvious that every one of the actors
on the stage believe what they speak, and this earnestness is
where the play succeeds.
Although no one in the cast is off, the strongest actors are Lendo
Abdur-Rahman as the initiate, Ron, and Mike Douglass
in his dual roles of slave leader Nat Turner and white Ova'Seea'
Jones. Mr. Rahman does the unenviable task of being part narrator,
part performer, and part observer in a consistent way. Mr. Douglass
avoids grandstanding with either of his polar characters, and
this helps the show immensely. Very solid performances come from
Kenny G. as the ancient T.J., Cassie Brittman as
T.J.'s mother and his spirit-voice, and Kiera-Nichelle Jones
in her roles of Ron's sister, Octavia, and the house slave, Katie
Lynn. Also well-performed are the multiple roles played by Joyce
Gittoes, John Michael Slook and Jackie Masei,
who mix caricature with humor and pathos to solid effect. Not
quite as solid as the rest, but still respectable, is Chris
N. Franklin's performance of Ron's historical love interest,
Ham, a homosexual slave, who does not seem to make as strong choices
for his role.
Jared Sakren's set design is rudimentary, though fits the
temporary, revolutionary feel of the show, and Corey Normandin's
lighting is full of holes and dead spots, but again serves to
push the rough sensation of the performance.
The combination of Planet Earth Theatre's avant garde
history and Black Theatre Troupe's concentration on issues
of race is a good fit. The climax of the show packs the power
of both of their theatrical strengths. While the production could
stand to be a bit more polished without losing the intensity of
its message, there is an urgency about the show that adds to its
revolutionary feel and gives theatergoers a sense of being involved
in something fleeting. Congratulations to Mr. Traylor, as well
as PET's Artistic Director Jared Sakren, and BTT's Artistic
Director David J. Hemphill, for collaborating on one of
the better experimental/guerilla theatre pieces to come from their
companies.
Production Details:
Insurrection: Holding History by Robert O'Hara
Planet Earth Theatre and Black Theatre Troupe
Planet Earth Theatre, Phoenix
(602) 252-8497
March 19th - April 10th, 1999