Review: MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM at Arts Centric

I love my job. I get to go to the theatre as time permits and watch great actors tell the tales written by some of the best storytellers in the universe, living or dead. Gotta admit that’s pretty cool. And when the actors are performing the works of Mr. Wilson, well, it just doesn’t get much better than that. Arts Centric is taking their turn at bat with a presentation of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom now playing through April 27th, 2025.

When I first learned that some of the movers and shakers on the Baltimore Theatre scene were planning to honor August Wilson, arguably the most venerated Black American playwright of my lifetime, with a three year celebration of his 10 play series known as the American Century Cycle, I immediately thought it was an excellent idea, and Baltimore was the perfect place to host this homage to such a distinguished writer. The entire canon of plays, each one set in a different decade, will be presented by some of the best theatre organizations in the city. Arts Centric is now presenting the third play in the series, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom opened on Broadway in 1984, the first of Wilson’s plays to make it to the Great White Way. In what has since become known as classic August Wilson style, Ma Rainey resonates with the realistic depictions of Black experiences. Based on the life of real-life blues legend and icon Ma Rainey, Wilson tells the story of an afternoon at a recording session in Chicago in the 1920s, in which Ma is scheduled to lay down some tracks for a new album. Her white manager, along with the record producer/promoter, anxiously await her arrival, as does her four-piece backup band. The band’s members are hanging out in the rehearsal room and the actual recording is done in another part of the building. The musicians pass the time regaling each other with insults and stories of their pasts, arguing for the most part good naturedly. When Ma finally arrives more than an hour late, she is accompanied by her nephew and her newest girlfriend. Her manager tries to soothe the prickly Ma, who is making demands left and right, asserting her dominance over the recording and everyone associated with it. Despite protests from one of her musicians, she is determined to record the first song, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, in her own inimitable style. Tensions are raised, arguments escalate among the band, between Ma and her manager and the producer, and the play culminates with a most unexpected twist that should have been predictable but is nonetheless shocking in its suddenness.

Wilson’s work is known for his ability to capture the idioms and syntaxses of Black speech patterns, including his prolific use of the N-word. While it must be rather jarring for white audiences to be exposed to a scene of Black lives that is rarely depicted so realistically, personally, the characters and their speech patterns were entirely familiar to me. Themes of alienation, racism, the discussions about the relevance of God and religion in general are presented in the context of the play with a skill that is, to this reviewer, a superb testament to the talent of the writer. Not only does the dialogue ring true, but Wilson captures the feelings and motivations that we so often hide from others and even from ourselves about the nature of our behaviors.

Kevin McAllister, Director, has once again worked his magic and crafted a production as professional as anything on any stage but particularly in Baltimore. With his steady pacing of the rapid dialogue and steady build of escalating emotions, he keeps the action moving while allowing the actors the time they need to reveal their characters. With the clever syncing that makes the actors look real playing their instruments, I believe the credit goes to Musical Director Cedric Lyles and Sound Designer Chris Lane. Talented lighting designer Tyrell Stanley does a great job of lighting the functional set by Emily Lotz. Larry Boggs' Costume Designs suit each character exceptionally well – loved those shoes that Sylvester wears and that green dress that Dussie Mae almost had on was fire!

This is again one of those casts that had no weak link. Each of the actors was as good and professional and as focused as any I’ve seen. I’d love to highlight each of them but I’ll focus on a couple of standouts, but by no means do I mean to slight performances by Gary DuBreuil as the much put-upon manager Irvin, Angelo Harrington II as Sylvester, Archie Williams as Toledo, who reminded me so much of all my uncles and even my dad (but I bet I’m older!), and the marvelously understated Grant Chism as Slow Drag. In smaller but no less impressive roles Brian Lyons-Burke as Sturdyvant and Glen Haupt as the Officer brought their best games.

Tia Thomas is all legs and coquettish flirt as the love interest of both Ma Rainey and Levee, and with a cupie-doll hairstyle and red, pouty lips she looks every bit the fickle flapper of the 1920s.

Dominic Gladden is at the top of his form in the role of Cutler, who brings his down-home drawl to the role and nails every monologue – sometimes they feel like soliloquys in their introspective recitations.

The explosively volatile portrayal of Levee, as played by Jusitn Burley is a veritable tour de force of superb acting. My only note would be to let us see just a bit more of the vulnerability of the character, though I bet we all know some loud talking, chest thumping, big man in the room who thinks he knows everything and is entitled to say and do whatever they want and to hell with what anyone else thinks. And they seem to never show any cracks in their emotional armor, so maybe Mr. Burley played the part exactly as he should.

If you’re going to do Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, then you damn sure better have an actor who can carry it off. And Arts Centric hit the jackpot with Ms. Kadejah Onê. From the moment she stomps and struts onto the stage, she captures the room, bites it on the ass and shakes it till we are all limp. Based on the real life Ma Rainey, this Ma Rainey starts taking names and kicking ass and yet, we get her, we understand how hard she’s had to work to get to where she is – and why she’s known as the Mother of the Blues, a revered figure in Black American history as much as in the world of blues. This is an actor that commands our attention and it never occurred to me to look away even for an instant while she was on.

Arts Centric was the artistic brainchild of Kevin McAllister and Cedric Lyles along with some of their classmates at Morgan State University in 2003. Since its inception, they have been known for quality productions of mostly musicals, with a decidedly purposeful emphasis on Black productions. As stated on their website,

 “ArtsCentric, Inc. is an African-American arts organization; a color-conscious performing arts and arts services company committed to reexamining traditional roles in the arts...”

Their philosophy is relevant to this review because there are so few examples of this level of achievement in Black theatre in the area. While they are by no means the only really good makers of these kinds of productions (the Arena Players come to mind immediately) they have built a well-deserved reputation for excellence. So go already! Get a ticket! Make a donation! And if not, find a way to support the less-heard makers of good theatre by People of Color. These voices need to be in the spotlight. Particularly when that light shines on the great works of August Wilson and his Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom runs April 10th to April 27th, presented by Arts Centric at 2600 Howard Street, Baltimore, MD. For tickets and information click here. Or call the box office at (410) 205-5130.