Review: CLYBOURNE PARK at DreamWrights
DreamWrights is proud to bring Clybourne Park to the stage from October 16th to 24th under the direction of Sharee-Denise McFadden.
DreamWrights is proud to bring Clybourne Park to the stage from October 16th to 24th under the direction of Sharee-Denise McFadden. This award winning play was written in 2010 by Bruce Norris, who was inspired in high school by A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. Clybourne Park has gone on to win a Pulitzer Prize for Drama, a Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play, a Tony Award for Best Play, and a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut.
Act I opens in a family home in 1959 Chicago. In A Raising in the Sun, an African American family is buying a home in a white neighborhood in Chicago, and Karl Lindner fails to stop them from moving to his neighborhood with an offer to buy them out. In Bruce Norris’, Clybourne Park, he begins his play in the aftermath of the house being sold. The sellers of the house are Bev and Russ, played by Amber Gamber and Andrew Texter, and they are looking to start over after the tragic suicide of their son, who returned from the Korean War. Both performances were equally strong and well suited opposite each other as they tackled emotional themes of grief and anger with authenticity and humor. Karl Lindner, played by Jordan Collins, represents the meddlesome community’s racism and resistance to an African American family in their neighborhood. I liked how almost over the top his performance was as if it encompassed the entire neighborhood of characters together into one person.
Act II opens with the same family home, but we are transported ahead 50 years to 2009. We now turn the tables and the African American neighborhood is resisting a wealthy white family’s plans to demolish the house and rebuild the home. Lena and Kevin, played by Melinda Anderson and Na’San Jamison, resist their history being demolished by the gentrification of their neighborhood. The buyers, Lindsey and Steve, are played by Theresa Strange and Jordan Collins. Tension builds and the mood changes dramatically as interruptions cause frustrations for everyone.
The cast of characters include Melinda Anderson (Francine / Lena), Jordan Collins (Karl / Steve), Amber Gamber (Bev / Kathy), Murphy Howard (Jim / Tom (Understudy: Jayden Marcus Smith), Na’San Jamison (Albert / Kevin), Jayden Marcus Smith ( Kenneth), Theresa Strange (Betsy / Lindsey), and Andrew Texter (Russ / Dan).
The talented cast of Clybourne Park tackles a variety of sensitive themes such as race, racism, grief, gender roles, community, communication, mental health, disability, wealth, “otherness,” and war. It’s a heavy but well acted show that balances drama and humor. This is an excellent show for older teens to get conversations around these topics started. I highly recommend seeing it while it’s on stage at DreamWrights. Check out the link below for tickets or more information.
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