Review: Pearl Cleage’s Fiery FLYIN’ WEST at The Black Rep Examines the Bonds of Sisterhood

Just 300 miles west of Kansas City, Missouri sits the town of Nicodemus, Kansas. Now a National Historic Site, Nicodemus is the oldest all black town in the Western United States.

The town became a destination for migrants, who were former slaves, looking for a place to settle and own land. It gave southern black people a place to escape persecution during the Restoration and allowed them freedom, work, and a place to call home.

Pearl Cleage’s play Flyin’ West is a fictional account of three sisters who owned land just outside the town of Nicodemus. The two older sisters, Sophie and Fannie, farmed the land while trying to prevent white prospectors from buying the land and taking over the town. The youngest sister, Minnie, married and moved to London with her husband Frank.

Sophie (Margery Handy) and Fanny’s (Jazzma Pryor) land sits next to one of the elder townspeople, Miss Leah (Renee Lockett), a close friend who they followed to Kansas.

When Minnie (Christina Yancy) and Frank (Aaron Allen) return for a visit, Frank’s true character is revealed. The sisters pull together to protect themselves, their land, and their home.

Flyin’ West is a family drama set against the backdrop of the migration West. The Jon Royal directed production succeeds because of the naturalistic acting of Handy, Pryor, Lockett, and Yancy. The women create realistic, believable relationships among the women they portray. The chemistry in Royal’s casting and the performances he elicited makes the familial connections feel genuine and the outside threat they face feel real.

Handy’s strong-willed Sophie is resolute, principled, and conviction driven. It is a captivating, complex, company-leading portrayal by the skilled actor. She is a special talent.

Handy spars with Yancy’s young, idealistic, and frightened Minnie. Yancy follows up her spirited turn as the teenage factory worker in A Brick and a Bible with another warm portrayal of an innocent and sweetly naïve young woman.

Handy and Yancy’s authentic portrayal of sibling rivalry allows Pryor’s Fanny to be the middle sibling running interference. Fanny strives to keep the peace in a fracturing family. She makes Fanny kind and loving,  but she also portrays her as a fiercely loyal sibling. All three of the actors capture sibling conflict and bonds in wonderfully true-to-life performances.

Lockett is affectionately sardonic as the matriarch Miss Leah who shares her elder advice. Her portrayal is grounded in the matriarchal wisdom the three sisters need. Her maternal counsel is always spot on and is the glue that binds the three sisters. Miss Leah is Cleage’s most compelling and well-written character, and Lockett is scene stealing in the role. 

Aaron Allen’s antagonist Frank is a scheming abusive man who rejects identification as a black man. His portrayal as the racially disidentified Frank is spot on, but his maliciousness as abuser and a manipulative conniver needed a harder edge. Allen’s performance would have soared had he more consistently captured the toxic vitriol he spewed against his own race as the light skinned man looking to pass in London.

Reginald Wilson delivers a charming turn as Will, Fanny’s friend, and love interest. His likable Will is a simple man with a huge heart who would go to any length to protect Fanny and her sisters.

 Chris Cumberbatch and Michelle Friedman Siler’s period set and costume designs transported the storytelling to late 1800’s rural Kansas. Their work was complimented by Justin Schmitz and Essie Claire Winston’s intentional sound and lighting design. Royal and his designers’ collaborative choices created a warm homestead to frame the actors’ authentic portrayals.

Nicodemus, Kansas still stands as the only remaining all black town from the western expansion. Cleage’s story of protecting your family and wanting to own your own piece of land is still relevant today.

Flyin’ West continues at The Black Rep through March 29, 2026. Performances are at the Kirkwood Performing Arts Center in the Ross Family Theatre. Visit blackrep.org for more information or to buy tickets.