Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson returns to MTC for the Broadway debut of his brilliant solo play celebrating the strong, big-hearted woman who raised him: Miss Rachel. In a 1950s boarding house outside Buffalo, Nanny, as she was affectionately called, opened her doors to anyone and everyone in need of kindness, hope, compassion and care. Giving a tour-de-force performance accompanied by live music written by acclaimed composer Bill Sims, Jr. and performed by Blues Hall of Fame Guitarist Junior Mack, Santiago-Hudson embodies more than 20 vibrant characters, creating a richly textured reminiscence that’s inspiring, uplifting and right at home on Broadway.
There are only two men onstage, but there's an awfully big crowd populating Lackawanna Blues. Ruben Santiago-Hudson's autobiographical one-man play (plus musician) paying loving tribute to the woman who raised him features such a gallery of colorful characters that it's no wonder it was adapted into a cable television movie featuring a large ensemble. But the piece works best as it was originally conceived-the actor narrating the tale and portraying some two dozen other characters in a virtuoso demonstration of solo storytelling.
An accomplished actor and director, Santiago-Hudson has performed Lackawanna Blues many times since its debut at the Public Theater in 2001, and he knows how to keep it moving in this Manhattan Theatre Club revival. From a perch on the left side of the stage, guitarist Junior Mack provides smartly integrated blues underscoring and vocals, playing original music by Bill Sims Jr. (and occasionally joined by Santiago-Hudson on harmonica); Jen Schriever's lighting gradually reveals previously imperceptible elements of Michael Carnahan's deceptively simple-looking set. There is nothing revolutionary about Lackawanna Blues, but it is a loving and skillful evocation of a formidable Black woman and the community she was able to create, through the force of her character, in a world of lack and want. It satisfies a hunger that Broadway seldom serves.
2001 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2021 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Play | Ruben Santiago-Hudson |
2022 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music in a Play | Bill Sims Jr. |
2022 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Lackawanna Blues |
2022 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Awards | Ruben Santiago-Hudson |
2022 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design (Play or Musical) | Jen Schreiver |
2022 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Special Achievement Awards | Ruben Santiago-Hudson |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play | Ruben Santiago-Hudson |
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