When writer Suzanne Alexander (Audra McDonald) returns to her alma mater as a guest speaker, in which she explores the violence in her works, a dark mystery unravels. Adrienne Kennedy's Ohio State Murders is an intriguing and unusual suspense play, as well as a social pertinent look at the destructiveness of racism in our society.
A Zoom reading of the play during the pandemic immersed McDonald in the material, and director Kenny Leon has planted her amidst a first-rate physical production. Beowulf Boritt’s set incorporates reality and fancy much as Kennedy does. Suzanne is surrounded by law library volumes, for instance, but the shelves are overhead and askew like cards thrown into the air in Alice in Wonderland. It’s a snowy day in Columbus, but we see the constant flakes through a gaping gash in the black back wall, the shavings of a consciousness being deconstructed before our eyes. Allen Lee Hughes’ lighting subtly ushers us through mists of pain and memory, with Jeff Sugg’s deftly chosen projections illustrating historical moments.
As directed by Tony winner Kenny Leon (A Raisin in the Sun, with our star), McDonald is pretty much the whole show, and the result is the rare theater outing where I never heard a single cell phone ringing or even a cough. I wish I could say that the entire evening was substantial enough to deserve that kind of reverence, but as an unnerving glimpse into a dark time—and an update on the continuing legend of Audra—Ohio State Murders is still welcome on Broadway. The curtain call climaxes with McDonald, playing the author, pointing to a slide projection of the play’s actual author. Author, author!
| 2007 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
| 2022 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play | Audra McDonald |
| 2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design of a Play | Allen Lee Hughes |
| 2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Ohio State Murders |
| 2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play | Beowulf Boritt |
| 2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design of a Play | Justin Ellington |
| 2023 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Ohio State Murders |
| 2023 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Play | Audra McDonald |
| 2023 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Ohio State Murders |
| 2023 | Tony Awards | Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Audra McDonald |
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