BLUES FOR AN ALABAMA SKY – Written by Pearl Cleage; Directed by Adrienne Martin-Fullwood. Produced by Firehouse Theatre Company (Presented in the John Hand Theatre at 7653 East 1st Street, Denver) through March 9th. Tickets available at 303-562-3232 or firehousetheatercompany.com.
BLUES seems like a slice-of-life drama but it’s a bit more than that. It’s also a character study and a look at how attitude influences the outcome. It’s funny, touching, and historical.
Basically, there are two couples living in comfortable co-existence across the hall from each other. Guy and Angel live in one apartment but only as temporary roommates. Angel just got dumped by her gangster boyfriend and lost her job as a singer in his nightclub. She’s sleeping on Guy’s sofa until she can find a new job and a new sugar daddy. She is self–centered, selfish, and scared yet confident in her ability to snare a man with her sexual prowess. Guy, on the other hand, is a costume designer with an over-weening determination to become the exclusive designer for the legendary Josephine Baker. But, instead of hoping it will just happen miraculously, he works hard at sending her sketches of his ideas and making his dream known to her. As a gay man, Guy is generous, outgoing, optimistic, and a determined dreamer.
The other couple are just beginning their couplehood. Delia is a pioneer in her desire to open a clinic in Harlem to teach women about birth control. She is happy for the strides she is making in the right direction and the quiet sweet relationship she is beginning with Sam, the local doctor. Sam likes a party – “Let the Good Times Roll!” – but also seems content to sit around the kitchen table and talk with Delia. He reluctantly takes care of the women for whom Delia’s lessons are too late.
The fifth character Leland enters the picture from way down South. A country boy mourning the loss of his two-year-gone wife, he is immediately drawn to Angel because of her resemblance to his deceased wife – and – she to him for his willingness to take care of her. However, his are not big city ways and attitudes.
Johnathan Underwood takes the role of Guy with a high-pitched energy that emphasizes his dynamic approach to his passion and underwrites his innate goodness. Nadiya Jackson enters the scene drunk and angry and rarely gets more than ten minutes away from those emotions for the rest of the evening. If she’s not sleeping one off, she’s buzzing around the apartment like a hummingbird on steroids. It’s only when she slows down that you can see her fear.
Jysten Atom and Marissa Joy play second banana to the dramatics going on across the hall. But they are supportive friends and possess an air of simplicity and authenticity that serves their roles. Their camaraderie with each other and their friends is natural and adds believability to the depth and longevity of their friendship. Throwing Leland with his outdated, homophobic, and misogynistic ideas into this experienced intelligent New York group of old friends is a big mistake.
The set designed, constructed, and painted by Jeff Jesmer and Megan Davis achieves the seediness of a NY cold water flat in Harlem in the 30’s with its plaster walls and mismatched furniture. The center of attention in Guy’s room is his alter to Josephine Baker. The costumes designed by Molly Gallegos are stunning and include Angel’s “work” clothes and the pitiful excuse for a dress that Leland deems more suitable for her new role as his girlfriend. Guy is a designer of drag costumes so, of course, he must display his wares like a peacock. It’s a good look for Johnathan.
It’s Black History Month and there are many fine offerings in Denver theatres right now to honor legacy and heritage. GEE’S BEND at the Fox, CLYBOURNE PARK at the Arvada Center, CHASING BREADCRUMBS by Local Theatre at the Dairy Center, THE CASE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD at Curious, and this show at Firehouse.
A WOW factor of 8.50!