BWW Previews: AMERICAN SON at Ensemble Theatre Company

Kendra is living her worst nightmare: her teenage son is missing. She and her estranged husband are waiting for news of his whereabouts in a Miami police station, where they have learned that he was involved in a traffic stop incident earlier in the day.

This is the dramatic set up for Christopher Demos-Brown's American Son, presented by Ensemble Theatre Company. Kendra (played by Tracey A. Leigh) is a Black protagonist who is managing anxiety around her missing, bi-racial son. She and her ex-partner (played by Jamison Jones), who is white, are forced to interact in the police precinct as they play this high-stakes waiting game that unfolds in real time.

Directed by Jonathan Fox, this play highlights issues of race and privilege, and offers a view of how people relate to each other in crisis. "The play is not just about how racism intersects with the police," says Fox. "It is at heart a portrayal of a marriage undergoing its challenges, and the couple's' love for their son. So it's a very human story that everyone can relate to." Fox, who is also the Artistic Director of Ensemble Theatre, says that he is "always looking to present a wide variety of plays, which includes stories that illuminate what's occurring in our culture."

American Son offers a simple concept that yields complicated discussions about very current concerns. "The issues of the play are so pertinent and so personal, particularly in the wake of the events of 2020, that it's easy to get caught up in the general frustration and injustices that many of us have experienced," says Leigh. "The situations that Kendra finds herself in and the choices she has made are complex, multi-layered, and often contradictory, especially in terms of raising a black child in a privileged, predominantly white environment."

See American Son at the New Vic Theater April 7-24.

Ensemble Theatre Company presents:
American Son
By Christopher Demos-Brown
Directed by Jonathan Fox

April 7-24, 2022
https://etcsb.org

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