Arts & Entertainment
The humanity of MLK
Gay-helmed ‘Mountaintop’ is ‘funny, spirited and serious’
New York-based Robert O’Hara says he finds it artistically rewarding to both write and direct. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
‘The Mountaintop’
Through May 12
Arena Stage
1101 Sixth Street, SW
$40-$85
202-488-3300
arenastage.org
Early in playwright Katori Hall’s “The Mountaintop” (now at Arena Stage), Martin Luther King, Jr., smokes a cigarette and audibly uses the restroom.
“Quickly this iconic figure of history is defined as very human,” says the play’s director Robert O’Hara. “This can be hard on those who prefer that King retain his saint-like status, but really there’s nothing to be offended about. The work’s theatricality makes it clear we’re not doing bio drama but rather we’re asking ‘What if?’ The playwright is exploring King’s psyche.”
Set in Memphis’ Lorraine Motel in 1968 on the last night of King’s life, Hall’s play imagines an unexpected meeting between the already legendary 39-year-old civil rights activist and a feisty 20-year-old maid, Camae. Their 80-minute exchange (at turns funny, spirited and serious) is filled with biography and politics, prompting King to examine his past and unfinished dreams.
Arena’s production (featuring Bowman Wright as King and Joaquina Kalukango as the maid) is in collaboration with Houston’s Alley Theatre where it played before moving to D.C.
“But being in Washington makes it a different experience,” says O’Hara, who’s gay. “President Obama and the Martin Luther King Memorial are here. Dr. King made his ‘I Have a Dream Speech’ here. Washington audiences seem more political. Arena’s Kreeger Theater is much more intimate than the Houston venue. So much about the production is altered because it’s in this new Washington environment.”
O’Hara was introduced to the play in its early developmental stages. “The director originally slated to do the workshop reading pulled out at the last minute and I stepped in. In those days, a lot of people were cold on the project. But from the start, I liked how it revealed King’s humanity and enjoyed its explosive and erotic elements.”
Soon others would agree: In 2009, Hall’s play premiered in London where it was a sleeper hit, winning that season’s Olivier Award for best new play. It opened on Broadway in 2011 in a production starring big names Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett.
As an undergraduate at Tufts University, O’Hara rather fleetingly considered a career in law. But by his third year, he knew he was destined to work in theater. O’Hara went on to at Columbia University where he studied directing. His mother wasn’t thrilled and suggested her son find something practical to fall back on. He did — playwriting. Not exactly what mom had in mind, but at 43, O’Hara has forged a busy and productive career involving both.
“With directing you have to wait for the phone to ring,” says O’Hara who lives in New York City with his longtime partner, a psychiatrist and avid theatergoer. “And others control whether you work or not; whereas with playwriting you can write whenever you want. Hopefully you have a few commissions to sustain you. I like to alternate the two. I’m happiest when I have a couple things going on at once.”
To live in New York, many playwrights have to work elsewhere. For O’Hara, that frequently means Washington. He’s premiered several plays here including his wild, time-traveling tragicomedy, “Insurrection: Holding History” at Theatre Alliance, and Woolly Mammoth’s productions of “Antebellum” (his exploration of race and history), and “Bootycandy,”a terrific autobiographical work about growing up black and gay in Cincinnati which he also directed. O’Hara is currently playwright in residence at Woolly Mammoth, a loosely defined gig that doesn’t require him to live in D.C.
“This town has been very good to me. Washington’s theater community is vibrant and it has been very receptive to my work. I’ve always enjoyed my time here. And now I’m happy to be working at Arena Stage.”
O’Hara’s career isn’t focused on being black and gay. “I don’t tend to think about that when I wake up in the morning. The same way I’m not conscious about being upright and breathing. Maybe other people look at me and see black and gay. I don’t feel that way,” he says. “I’ve never really felt part of a group on any subject. I don’t know many out writer/directors of color. I’m not interested in writing the well-made play. But what separates me is also what makes me unique. And while I think of myself as a shy person, I’m increasingly confident when it comes to my work.”
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Eastern Shore chef named James Beard Finalist
Harley Peet creates inventive food in an inclusive space
In a small Eastern Shore town filled with boutiques, galleries, and the occasional cry of waterfowl from the Chesapeake, Chef Harley Peet is most at home. In his Viennese-inflected, Maryland-sourced fine-dining destination Bas Rouge, Peet draws from his Northern Michigan upbringing, Culinary Institute of America education, and identity as a gay man, for inspiration.
And recently, Peet was named a James Beard Finalist for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic – the first “Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic” finalist representing the Eastern Shore.
Peet, after graduation from the Culinary Institute of America, took a position as sous chef at Tilghman Island Inn, not far from Bas Rouge. Falling in love with the Eastern Shore, he continued his passion for racing sailboats, boating, gardening, and fishing, and living his somewhat pastoral life as he opened Bas Rouge in 2016 as head chef, a restaurant part of the Bluepoint Hospitality group, which runs more than a dozen concepts in and around Easton, Md.
Coming from a rural area and being gay, Peet knew he had his work cut out for him. He was always aware that the service and hospitality industry “can be down and dirty and rough.”
Now as a leader in the kitchen, he aims to “set a good example, and treat people how I want to be treated. I also want to make sure if you’re at our establishment, I’m the first to stand up and say something.”
The Bas Rouge cuisine, he says, is Contemporary European. “I’m inspired by old-world techniques of countries like Austria, Germany, and France, but I love putting a new spin on classic dishes and finding innovative ways to incorporate the bounty of local Chesapeake ingredients.”
His proudest dish: the humble-yet-elevated Wiener Schnitzel. “It is authentic to what one would expect to find in Vienna, down to the Lingonberries.” From his in-house bakery, Peet dries and grinds the housemade Kaiser-Semmel bread to use as the breadcrumbs.
Peet works to support the LGBTQ community inside and outside of the kitchen. “I love that our Bluepoint Hospitality team has created welcoming spaces where our patrons feel comfortable dining at each of our establishments. Our staff have a genuine respect for one another and work together free of judgment.”
Representing Bluepoint, Peet has participated in events like Chefs for Equality with the Human Rights Campaign, advocating for LGBTQ rights.
At Bas Rouge, Peet brings together his passion for inclusion steeped in a sustainability ethic. He sees environmental stewardship as a way of life. Peet and his husband have lived and worked on their own organic farm for several years. Through research in Europe, he learned about international marine sourcing. Witnessing the impacts of overfishing, Peet considers his own role in promoting eco-friendly practices at Bas Rouge. To that end, he ensures responsible sourcing commitments through his purveyors, relationships that have helped create significant change in how people dine in Easton.
“I have built great relationships in the community and there’s nothing better than one of our long-standing purveyors stopping in with a cooler of fresh fish from the Chesapeake Bay. This goes especially for catching and plating the invasive blue catfish species, which helps control the species’ threat to the local ecosystem.
Through his kitchen exploits, Peet expressed a unique connection to another gay icon in a rural fine-dining restaurant: Patrick O’Connell, of three Michelin starred Inn at Little Washington. In fact, Peet’s husband helped design some of O’Connell’s kitchen spaces. They’ve both been able to navigate treacherous restaurant-industry waters, and have come out triumphant and celebrated. Of O’Connell, Peet says that he “sees [his restaurants] as canvas, all artistry, he sees this as every night is a show.” But at the same time, his “judgment-free space makes him a role model.”
Being in Easton itself is not without challenges. Sourcing is a challenge, having to either fly or ship in ingredients, whereas urban restaurants have the benefit of trucking, he says. The small town “is romantic and charming,” but logistics are difficult – one of the reasons that Peet ensures his team is diverse, building in different viewpoints, and also “making things a hell of a lot more fun.”
Reflecting on challenges and finding (and creating) space on the Eastern Shore, Peet confirmed how important it was to surround himself with people who set a good example, and “if you don’t like the way something is going, fuck them and move on.”
Team DC, the umbrella organization for LGBTQ-friendly sports teams and leagues in the D.C. area, held its annual Night of Champions Awards Gala on Saturday, April 20 at the Hilton National Mall. The organization gave out scholarships to area LGBTQ student athletes as well as awards to the Different Drummers, Kelly Laczko of Duplex Diner, Stacy Smith of the Edmund Burke School, Bryan Frank of Triout, JC Adams of DCG Basketball and the DC Gay Flag Football League.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The 2024 National Cannabis Festival was held at the Fields at RFK Stadium on April 19-20.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Covering the @NatlCannaFest at RFK Stadium for @WashBlade . Stop by the LGBTQ+ booth and pick up a paper if you are here. pic.twitter.com/is7hnsaPns
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) April 20, 2024
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