Meticulous, splendid production is best yet; to miss is to err
By Charlene Baldridge | SDUN Theater Critic
Like most of August Wilson’s plays, “Gem of the Ocean” (playing at Cygnet Theatre Old Town through February 24) leaves one awestruck over the late playwright’s abilities and suffering of extreme separation anxiety.
How can one possibly re-enter the real world after living with Wilson’s vivid creatures for a while? How can one possibly hold forever the memory of the words, the extraordinary ensemble, the music, and debuting director Victor Mack’s meticulous staging upon Andrew Hull’s splendid set?
This particular play – Wilson wrote one for each decade of the African-American experience in 20th-century America – is set in 1904 in Pittsburgh’s Hill District. The action revolves around a lost man named Citizen Barlow (Laurence Brown), who comes to see Aunt Ester after having been told that she can wash his sou.
Aunt Ester (resplendent Brenda Phillips) is a legendary seer and healer whose presence, seen or unseen, hovers over Wilson’s plays. Three hundred-some years old, Aunt Ester is attended by her longtime friend Eli (Grandison M. Phelps III) and a young woman called Black Mary (Melva Graham), who is the abused sister of Caesar Wilkes (Mujahid Abdul-Rashid), the district’s over-zealous lawman. Mary always has something on the stove for residents and frequent visitors to the household, including Solly Two Kings (Antonio “TJ” Johnson) and Rutherford Selig (Ron Choularton), an itinerant household goods vendor.
The plot points are simple: an employee accused of stealing a bag of nails from the local metal plant has walked into the river and drowned. Having been told he can’t see her until Tuesday, Citizen Barlow breaks into Aunt Ester’s house. She welcomes him, sensing his extreme need and takes him on a spiritual voyage to the City of Bones aboard the ship, Gem of the Ocean. Solly receives a letter from his sister, in straitened circumstances in Alabama, and, despite age and infirmity, resolves to make the trek on foot to bring her north.
The characters are so well written and so fully inhabited by this amazing ensemble that one is loath to let them and their stories go. Black History Month is rich this year, offering playgoers multiple, excellent choices. To miss “Gem of the Ocean” would be to err egregiously. It’s the best production seen hereabouts since The Globe’s “August: Osage County.”
Leonard Patton’s vocal arrangements – there is a lot of singing – are mesmerizing. Kevin Anthenill’s original music and sound design are as if part of the play’s warp and woof. Hats are important in Shelly Williams’ period costume design. Chris Rynne’s lighting is impeccable, giving one a feel for locale and season.
Whether Solly Two Kings’ staff, magnificently wrought by Angelica Ynfante, is weapon, walking stick or something more, is in the eye of the beholder. Peter Herman is wig and makeup designer, and fight choreography is in the capable hands of George Yé.
‘Gem of the Ocean’
WHERE: Cygnet Theatre, 4040 Twiggs St. (Old Town)
WHEN: Wed. – Thurs. at 7:30 p.m., Fri. at 8 p.m., Sat. at 3 and 8 p.m., and Sun. at 2 and 7 p.m. through Feb. 24
INFO: 619-337-1525
WEB: cygnettheatre.com
