Posts Tagged ‘daniel bryant’

The Black Rep Stages Powerful, Emotional “Color Purple”

Posted in St Louis Theatre, tagged , , , , , , , , , on September 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The Color Purple
Book by Marsha Norman
Music and Lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray
Directed by Daniel Bryant
Choreographed by Heather Beal
The Black Rep
September 12, 2026

Kelvin Roston, Jr., Angela Wildflower, Adrienne Spann, Brian McKinley
Photo by Arieona Phillips
The Black Rep

The Color Purple, based on Alice Walker’s celebrated novel, has been filmed, made into a musical, and filmed again as a musical. The musical is currently resonating with audiences as the first show in the Black Rep’s 50th season, directed by Daniel Bryant. Featuring a stellar cast and memorable production values, this is a production that leans into the emotion of the story and its characters. I’ve seen this musical before twice, and I’ve been impressed both times, but this one might just top them all. 

The story, set in the first part of the 20th Century in Georgia, follows Celie (Angela Wildflower), who grows up in a difficult situation, abused by her father and forced to give up her newborn children. She’s also forced to marry Mister (Kelvin Roston, Jr.) who treats her badly and wanted to marry her sister Nettie (Morgan Taylor), who he eventually drives away when she refuses his advances. Celie is timid and fearful at first, but she meets influential people who help her to learn to stand up for herself, including the bold Sophia (Adrienne Spann), who marries Mister’s son, Harpo (Brian McKinley), and outgoing singer Shug Avery (Alexis J. Roston), to whom Celie becomes especially close. Over the years, Celie is able to find her own path and voice, influencing the lives of those around her, as well.

The story covers a lot of themes, including life for Black Americans in the South, and the systemic racism and sexism that causes much hardship for Celie and others. There are also more uplifting themes of friendship, love, and finding your own path despite various troubles. It also features some topics that are probably best reserved for mature teens and up. It’s a highly emotional, often poetic story that follows one woman’s path amid suffering toward finding her purpose. 

The cast is universally excellent, led by Wildflower in a fantastic, complex performance as Celie, growing into the character obviously and convincingly as Celie matures from a young, timid girl to a bolder, more confident woman. Her vocals are also spectacular, particularly in the show-stopping “I’m Here” in Act 2. There are also strong performances from Kelvin Roston, Jr. in a particularly complex portrayal of Mister, as well as Alexis J. Roston as the outgoing, amorous Shug. Spann is also a standout as the bold Sophia, matched well with McKinley’s Harpo, who also has convincing chemistry with Tyler White’s ambitious Squeak, Harpo’s occasional girlfriend. There are fine performances, as well, from Anita Jackson, Amber Rose, and Olivia Neal as a trio of Church Ladies who serve as something of a Greek Chorus, commenting on the action of the story. There’s also a strong ensemble full of energy and backing up the leads with enthusiasm and strong dance moves choreographed by Heather Beal. 

The look and atmosphere of the show is well realized through Tim Jones’s excellent, evocative unit set and Michael Sullivan’s marvelous lighting which utilizes colors especially well, including the titular purple. The costumes by Jarrod Barnes are well-crafted and styled to the period, and there’s also excellent work from sound designer Justin Schmitz and props maker Mikhail Lynn. The ensemble is backed by a strong and vibrant band, as well, led by music director Jermaine Manor. 

The Color Purple is a stirring, highly affecting musical that’s sure to leave a strong impression on its audiences, as judging by the reactions I witnessed the night I saw it. It’s a well-cast, character-driven show that evokes its themes and time period with substance and emotion. It’s possibly the best production of this show I have seen, and I highly recommend checking it out while you can. 

Cast of The Color Purple
Photo by Arieona Phillips
The Black Rep

The Black Rep is presenting The Color Purple at Washington University’s Edison Theatre until September 27, 2026

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Provocative, Evocative “Feeding Beatrice” Brings Chills, Impressive Performances to the Rep Studio

Posted in St Louis Theatre, tagged , , , , , , , on November 4, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Feeding Beatrice
by Kirsten Greenidge
Directed by Daniel Bryant
Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Studio
November 1, 2019

Lorene Chesley, Nathan James
Photo by Jon Gitchoff
Repertory Theatre of St. Louis

The Rep is launching its Steve Woolf Studio Series for 2019-2020 with a World Premiere production that provides a new, semi-immersive experience to go along with a thought-provoking, thoroughly chilling play. Kirsten Greenidge’s Feeding Beatrice takes its characters, and its audience, on a mysterious, increasingly terrifying journey into a crumbling old Gothic house, and into a highly metaphorical exploration of several important topics in American life. As is usual for the Rep, the casting and production values are impressive, as well, with the house as very much a character in the show, and a particularly strong set of performances at its heart.

As I’ve written before, I’ll be the first person to say that horror shows aren’t generally my cup of tea. Especially around Halloween season, though, these kinds of shows are not uncommon in the St. Louis theatre scene. This year, the Rep’s offering is essentially the only one, and it’s more of the “psychological thriller” type than the “blood and guts” type, which makes it initially easier to take at least for me. Still, even though this isn’t a gory show for the most part, it’s still thoroughly creepy and insidious, as the horror kind of sneaks in slowly and then moves in to stay. Or, in the case of one particular ghost, never really left in the first place. The premise starts out simple enough, as new residents Lurie (Nathan James) and June (Lorene Chesley) spend some romantic time in the upstairs bathroom and share their hopes and dreams for the house. Soon, however, we learn more about the couple and the house itself, as June plans for a dinner party to impress the new neighbors, and as they make an unsettling discovery in that same upstairs bathroom. Another important aspect of the show is that while Lurie and June are African-American, their new neighborhood is essentially all-white, and has been for generations. So at first, when a teenage white girl, Beatrice (Allison Winn), shows up at their door to introduce herself, it doesn’t seem that unusual to them. Soon, however, they find that Beatrice is not just another neighbor. She uses a lot of outdated–and even offensive–terminology, and drops pop culture references that are decades old. She also likes June’s homemade jam, quite a lot, and is frequently asking for glasses of milk and dance lessons. She also talks about her parents, and how strong an influence they have been on her even though she declares herself to be different. She’s also very attached to the house, and especially concerned about who lives there, even though she claims to like June and Lurie. What ensues is a struggle of sorts between the couple and Beatrice, and also between June and Lurie in their different attitudes toward the house, the neighborhood, events in their past, and initially Beatrice as well. Also figuring into the story is Lurie’s younger brother, Leroy (Ronald Emile), a plumber and family man who has a lot of things June says she wants, but not in the way that she has imagined or that she perceived society to expect. There’s a lot going on here, and a whole lot of it is metaphorical, in terms of what the house means, what Beatrice herself stands for, as well as Leroy’s standing in opposition to that, and the struggle that Lurie and to a larger degree June face in dealing with their own disappointments, hopes, and dreams. It all plays out in a highly personal, increasingly creepy tale that’s dominated by a dark, insidious atmosphere and the developing power struggle between Beatrice and June.

The themes, as noted in the supplemental materials in the program from playwright Greenidge, director Daniel Bryant, and the Rep’s Artistic Director Hana Sharif, deal very much with the insidiousness and pervasiveness of racism in American culture, and how it affects generations of people, black and white, in different ways. It’s all played out in a classic horror style, with acknowledged echoes of Hitchcock, as well as elements of several classic ghost stories and other familiar horror tropes. It’s all metaphor, but highly personal as well, with thought-provoking situations and characters that can–and should–provoke much thought, discussion, and awareness that can–and should–contribute to real, lasting change.

The structure is inventive, and the characters impressively portrayed, with the two performances of Chesley as the determined, grieving, increasingly focused June and Winn as the initially cheerful, but damaged and increasingly controlling Beatrice at the center of the production. These two performances are the highlight here, as the struggle between these two characters is the center of the drama. There are also impressive performances from James as the well-meaning but increasingly baffled Lurie, and Emile as the level-headed Leroy. The metaphors are evident everywhere, but the relationships are what drive the story as a story, and the top-notch performances make that drama accessible and real.

Technically, the show is remarkably impressive, pushing the established boundaries of what has been done in this space before. The thoroughly detailed set by Lawrence E. Moten III brings the antique house to life vividly, and the set-up, in which audiences enter the “house” through a long hallway and sit in creaky old kitchen chairs, adds to the overall atmosphere and chilling effect of the show. Jason Lynch’s evocative lighting adds to this effect as well, as does David Kelepha Samba’s sound design, the dance choreography by Heather Beal and fight choreography by Erik Kuhn, along with the well-suited costumes by Mika Eubanks.

Feeding Beatrice is in some ways what you might expect, but in a lot of other ways, it’s inventive and new. It’s also a striking exercise in how to make a thoroughly engaging character drama from a largely metaphorical basis. From its ominous first moment to its chilling final moments, this is a show that’s going to make you think, as it should. Although it does call to mind some similarly themed movies in recent years–such as Get Out and Us–this story’s origins are older than those films, and the recurring of such themes emphasizes their importance. It’s at timely, thoroughly well crafted play that makes a memorable impression at the Rep Studio. It’s definitely worth seeing, thinking about, and talking about.

 

Lorene Chesley, Allison Winn
Photo by Jon Gitchoff
Repertory Theatre of St. Louis

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis is presenting Feeding Beatrice in the Studio Theatre until November 17, 2019

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