Theater
‘FELA!’ Afrobeats from Broadway to F Street
Gay choreographer Bill T. Jones on his Tony-winning musical
āFELA!ā
Through Feb. 10
Shakespeare Theatre Company
Sidney Harman Hall
610 F Street, NW
$45-$100
202-547-1122
shakespeare-theatre.org
Famed choreographer Bill T. Jones first crossed paths with the legendary Nigerian singer and political activist Fela Kuti at dance class. It was Binghamton, N.Y., in the ā70s and while Fela wasnāt exactly there in person, his music was and it made a big impression.
āAt the time I was very involved in contemporary, experimental dance,ā remembers Jones, whoās gay. āAnd one of my colleagues [Lois Welk, founder of American Dance Asylum] discovered an album by Fela at the public library. It wasnāt the usual kind of African dance music Iād heard in class at the university. It was Afrobeat [Kutiās trademark blend of jazz, traditional African sounds and funk] ā an entirely different thing and it hit us in the eye.ā
Fast forward several decades and Jones ā now the world renowned co-founder of the Harlem-based Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company ā is asked by producer Stephen Hendel to direct, choreograph and help write a Broadway bound musical exploring the intense, decadent and high-flying life of Fela who died from AIDS in 1997. Jones agrees. The project is held up by lawyers for two years, but eventually makes it to Broadway. Backed by Shawn āJay-Zā Carter and Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, among others, the show is a commercial and critical hit winning three Tony Awards (including best choreography for Jones).
On Inauguration Day, Jones was in Chapel Hill, N.C., opening a new project celebrating the centennial of gay dancer Nijinskyās seminal and controversial ballet āRite of Spring,ā and feeling meditative about Obamaās second term.
āHeās a man of great intelligence and integrity but heās been thrown into the quagmire that is our political system,ā Jones says, āso heās making incremental movements and sometimes that can be disappointing for those who want fast change.ā But he was happy to talk about himself, and Fela, both the man and the show which is currently playing at the Shakespeare Theatre Company with Adesola Osakalumi and Duain Richmond alternating the title role and Destinyās Child star Michelle Williams as Sandra Isadore, one of Felaās many women.
For Jones, the idea of Fela took a little getting used to. āInitially I fell under the sway of his story if not his charisma,ā he says. āBut once I could see him as a rock star of the African nationalist variety who also happened to be a political firebrand and Yoruba priest, I thought āWow, this is a character who no one could have written.ā What other rock star had the distinction of being arrested 200 times and had his bones broken and hands crushed by the government in retaliation for the music they performed? Fela earned the worldās respect.ā
When trying to nail scope of show, Jones says, he was faced with the challenge of introducing Fela to an audience that didnāt know him. āMost Broadway audiences donāt listen to world music, but Fela was a showman in tight pants, sexy, who played great music and thatās something everyone knows. My companion Bjorn Amelin suggested I bring a poster version of him to the stage. He was right.ā
āI like that he had such an immense sexual appetite and stuck his thumb in the eye of polite society,ā Jones says. āBut Fela definitely wasnāt cuddly. The more I read Iām glad Iām glad that I got to know him from a distance. The same could be said of Elvis or Michael Jackson, any superstar. Josephine Bakerās son once said that the big stars like Baker belongs in the firmament, because if you get too close you get burned.ā
In his searing and poetic memoir āLast Night on Earth,ā Jones writes about dance, his humble beginnings, Manhattanās gay baths, being HIV positive since 1985, and his late partner Arnie Zaneās death from AIDS. Near the end of his life, Zane encouraged Jones to find a new partner, saying he wouldnāt do well alone. Ā āOf course he was right,ā Jones says. āIām a couple kind of person, and Iāve been a lucky S.O.B. I met Arnie when I was 19. And now Iāve been with Bjorn for many years. I hope this is the train thatās going to take me to the end of the line.ā
Commercially speaking, āFela!ā has raised Jones to a higher stratum. There arenāt a lot of African Americans whoāve helmed big budget, hugely successful Broadway shows. āBroadway was a new demographic for me and the stakes were high. I come from the avant-garde where thereās a different sensibility. But in many respects, all projects are the same: It means finding a language, the world and the motor of whatever it is that youāre working on. That part never changes.ā
Theater
Jessica Phillips shines in āPenelope,ā a āpandemic parableā
Alex Bechtel was inspired to write about loneliness, waiting, separation
āPenelopeā
Thorough April 28
Signature Theatre, the Ark
4200 Campbell Ave, ArlingtonĀ
$40-$99
Sigtheatre.org
In the new musical āPenelope,ā Broadwayās Jessica Phillips gives an unforgettable take on the title role torn from the pages of Homerās āOdysseyā ā more or less. Fortified by bourbon and backed by a Greek chorus of musicians, the character uncharacteristically steps out from the background to share her story surrounding two decades waiting on the island kingdom of Ithica for the return of her absent husband Odysseus.Ā
Sometimes described as a āpandemic parable,ā the 70-minute work is based on composer/playwright Alex Bechtelās personal experience. While separated from his partner during COVID, he was inspired to write about loneliness, waiting, and separation, a subject Phillips was eager to tackle.
An accomplished Broadway actor and mother of two, Phillips, 52, is best known for memorable turns in āDear Evan Hansen,ā āThe Scarlet Pimpernel,ā āNext to Normal,ā and āPriscilla Queen of the Desert.ā
Two years ago, she made news for coming out as queer after having long been identified as straight. Parts of the theater scene were caught a bit off guard, but only momentarily. Now, she lives in New York with her partner Chelsea Nachman, a theatrical publicist.āWe share the same professional community but in very different roles. I think that makes life easier for us.ā
Currently enjoying an extended run at Signature in Arlington where the trees are in bloom, she spares time for a phone interview, starting off withāPerfect timing. Iāve just finished the last song on Beyonceās āCowboy Carter.ā Letās talk.ā
WASHINGTON BLADE: Increasingly, I hear artists report having been deeply changed by the pandemic. Did that have anything to do with your coming out in 2022?
PHILLIPS: Definitely. During the pandemic, those of us in the arts were in deep crisis, because our industry had collapsed in almost every way. At the same time, that space allowed us to be contemplative about where we were. For me, that period of time gave me the space to both come to terms with and confront those fears about saying who I was, out loud and publicly.
BLADE: Did you have professional concerns?
PHILLIPS: Oh yeah, I was specifically worried about perception. Not so much about being queer but more what it meant to have come out relatively late in life. I had some fear around whether people would take me less seriously.
At the same time, I was nervous about being fully transparent and worried about my privacy and being vulnerable. Like other women I knew, I was more comfortable dealing with traditional societal expectations in America. I grew up with those cultural expectations and thought of myself in those terms for a long time.
BLADE: What changed?
PHILLIPS: Whatās been so freeing for me, I can confront how I took on those expectations and say Iām not going to let those determine how I live my life. I get to decide.
BLADE: Thereās a lot of wonderful storytelling in āPenelope.ā Whatās been your way into that?
PHILLIPS: My way of moving through the show is allowing this character to experience all five stages of grief. Humor, slapstick comedy, bargaining, denial. And ultimately acceptance and deep grief.
When an audience is alive and invested, itās palpable and elevates the storytelling. When an audience is having a thinking rather feeling experience that changes the tone of my storytelling and not in a bad way.
Itās interesting how much theyāre a part of everything. Itās really intimate. The audience is just six feet away. Itās a unique experience and weāre on this ride together. And I find this to be a really beautiful and satisfying experience that Iāve not had before.
BLADE: After Signature, whatās next for āPenelopeā?
PHILLIPS: Thatās the million-dollar question. Hopefully weāll take it forward to New York or tour it, but that requires willingness and money. I do think thereās a broad audience for this. Itās beautiful, unique, artistic, really emotional, and at the same time possesses an intellectual quality thatās missing from a lot of commercial theater these days.
BLADE: And whatās next for theater?
Phillips: I think one good thing that came out of the pandemic is that people like Alex Bechtel had an opportunity to create. In the next decade weāre going to see the results of that. I think we have some extraordinary things to look forward to. If a work like āPenelopeā is any indication, weāre all in for something really good.
Theater
āNancy,ā soaked in ā80s nostalgia, is āqueer AFā
Mosaic production led by out director Ken-Matt Martin
āNancyāĀ
Through April 21
Mosaic Theater Company at Atlas Performing Arts Center
1333 H St., N.E.
$53-$70
Mosaictheater.org
Set in 1985, smack dab in the middle of the Reagan years, Rhiana Yazzieās āNancyā is totally soaked in nostalgia: shoulder pads, high hair, Van Halen, etc. For some theatergoers, it jogs the memory and for others serves as an introduction to an alien era.
Out director Ken-Matt Martin describes the production (now at Mosaic Theater) as āqueer AF.ā He continues, āBut thatās true with everything I touch. My aesthetics and interests are unapologetically queer. When you first walk into theater, you see a big ass picture of Nancyās face. The whole play is kind of set on her face.ā
Martin, who puts his age as āsomewhere over 30,ā gives a brief rundown via telephone: āāNancyā places two women on parallel tracks and we get to watch them on a collision course. Esmeralda [Anaseini Katoa], a Navajo mother and advocate determined to improve the condition of her family and reservation. Her story is juxtaposed to that of Nancy Reagan [Lynn Hawley] whoās busy at the White House consulting with society astrologer Joan Quigley to help guide Reagan [Michael Kevin Darnall] and his administration. The womenās worlds come together over Nancyās direct ancestral connection to Pocahontas.ā
The busy storyline also includes a moment surrounding Rock Hudsonās final days, a moment when well-coiffed, clothes-crazy Nancy was presented with the opportunity to make a difference but chose not to.
āAnd the work doesnāt let Nancy off the hook,ā adds Martin. āItās a full meal of a play.ā
Produced in partnership with New Native Theatre based in the Twin Cities, Mosaicās epic offering, a very D.C. play about ancestry and ambition, almost looks at Ron and Nancy as cartoon characters but isnāt without empathy.
Martin and Yazzie both love satire and absurdity; they enjoy comedy and things that are funny until theyāre not. So, the evening shifts in tone as it moves into more serious areas, particularly an exploration of how the ā80s and Reaganās failed trickle-down agenda set the stage for many of todayās problems.
The directorās way into theater was as a child actor. After successfully begging his mother to drive him from their native Little Rock, Ark., to a regional Atlanta audition, he booked an appearance on Nickelodeon’s landmark series āAll Thatā and snagged an agent in the process. He continued to act for a time before becoming interested in other facets of showbiz.
After graduating with an MFA in directing from Brown University/Trinity Repertory Company, Martin embarked on a terrifically busy schedule. In addition to freelance directing, he has helmed and helms various prestigious companies as artistic director and managing producer (Pyramid Theatre Company in Des Moines, IA, Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, and was recently appointed Interim Artistic Director of Baltimore Center Stage and Arkansas Repertory Theatre.)
Currently an itinerant professional (Martin gave up his place in Chicago and hops from job to job where they house him), he says, āIt can get a little old, but overall, not bad at all.ā
Next up, Martin is directing Olney Theatreās production āLong Way Down,ā the adaptation of a Young Adult novel by DMV native Jason Reynolds. āItās a big regional tryout that after a limited engagement in Olney leaves for the Apollo Theatre in New York. Iām excited.ā
Martin is at home with plays that are tricky to stage, making him a good fit for āNancyā with its multiple locations, scope, and scale. Heās enjoyed the challenge of the workās collapsing time lines and the playwrightās tough, complicated, smart, and fast-moving language.
āPerhaps most importantly,ā he adds. āRhiana has entrusted me with the opportunity to tell this very unique story, a story that can resonate with Native people and Native audiences. This part is very new to me as a director.ā
Theater
Talented pair of local queer actors tackles āLittle Shop of Horrorsā
Fordās production features terrific score
āLittle Shop of HorrorsāĀ
Through May 18
Fordās Theatre
511 10th St., N.W.
$33-$95
Fords.orgĀ
Ever since premiering off-Broadway in 1982, āLittle Shop of Horrorsā has drawn a devoted following of avid audiences as well as performers eager to act in the show. Now playing at Fordās Theatre, the doo-wop, dark comedy features a terrific cast including a wildly talented pair of local queer actors whoāve longed to appear in the show since they were kids.
Set in the urban 1960s, Alan Menken and Howard Ashmanās hit show with a terrific score follows the wacky rise of Seymour, a nebbishy florist in a Skid Row shop who changes his fortunes by unintentionally marketing an exotic, human eating plant.
Chani Wereley, 28, who plays Seymourās love interest Audrey, a hyper femme downtowner with an edge, has had her on eye the role for years. Wereley says, āAudreyās been around the block more than once, but I approach her as a person who moves through the world with love and hope.ā
The queer D.C. native adds, āOn long trips to visit family in Canada or Florida, the first thing weād do is pop a āLittle Shop of Horrorsā video [film version] into the carās VHS player. Iāve watched is so many times, I could quote the whole movie to you.ā
After auditioning to play Audrey in director Kevin S. McAllisterās production at Fordās, Wereley never thought sheād book the part, and when they said she got it, she cried.
Similarly, Tobias A. Young, 34, the pansexual actor who voices the part of the bloodthirsty plant affectionately dubbed Audrey II, explains his intense interest in the work: āI started watching the film in ā86. Growing up as a little gay boy in Calvert County, Md., I wanted to be blonde Audrey [played by Ellen Green in the movie]. I didnāt know much about musicals at the time, but I was absorbed.ā
When asked by Fordās to play the voracious plant Audrey II without auditioning, his reply was an unhesitant āyes.ā
Voicing a role requires Young to sing from backstage in a black box rigged with monitors and a mixing board. He says, āpeople ask if Iām singing from inside of the ever-growing, scary plant. No, Iām not, and thatās fine. But letās face it, actors love to be seen on stage, but I donāt feel entirely unseen as Audrey II.ā
Heās worked hard and successfully with formidable puppeteers Ryan Sellers and Jay Frisby to bring parts of himself to the carnivorous plant ā his sassiness, own movements, and even a tilt of his head; their efforts have drawn the actual Young into the show.
Both Wereley and Young possess gorgeous, emotive voices as evidenced by Wereleyās striking rendition of Audreyās āSuddenly Seymour,ā and Youngās soulful āFeed Me (Git It).ā Additionally, both actors are also big on queer representation in theater.
When her young pals were listening to Britney Spears, Wereley was dancing to retro tunes like āMashed Potato Time,ā and her favorite song to this day, the Shirelleās girl group anthem āWill You Still Love Me Tomorrow.ā As Audrey, Wereley eschews the characterās usual platinum hair for a bouncy brunette, cherry-streaked wig, tight pencil skirts, swing coats, and her very own half-sleeve tattoo.
āItās important for people to see themselves on stage,ā she says. āSeeing me or someone like me is inherently interesting. Being that person on Instagram or with the institution, cast, or audiences is meaningful. Itās important.ā
In 2011, a couple years after finishing high school, Young landed a part in āDream Girlsā at Tobyās Dinner Theatre, and heās been working professionally ever since. Growing up, he didnāt see a lot of himself ā Black and queer ā on social media. He now wants to be open and honest for those out there who might not feel seen, he says
An introvert who lets everything loose on the stage, Young says, ātheater is a safe space for queer people. Thatās the first place we feel safe, particularly in school. And this is why we need theaters in schools, now more than ever.ā
He adds, āWhatās great about Fordās is its surprises, especially when they switch up casting. Itās meaningful to see the shows you love, but why not see them with a twist? Using unexpected actors and incorporating queer people just makes it that much better.ā
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