Monday, October 17, 2011

Theater Review: The Mountaintop

Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett.  Photo Credit: Joan Marcus.
Performances Go to the Top, but the Play about Civil Rights Leader's Last Night Misses the Promised Land
By Lauren Yarger
The idea is interesting: a look at the night before the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Performances by Samuel L. Jackson (in his Broadway debut) as the beloved civil rights leader, though portrayed here in an unfamiliar light, and Angela Bassett as the hotel maid with whom he converses are good too -- very strong. The Mountaintop,  Katori Hall's bizarre play, which inexplicably won the Olivier for Best Play in 2010, is not exactly good, though, and falls short of the Promised Land.

It's April 3, 1968 and King, fighting a cold and exhaustion, retires to his shabby room at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis (David Gallo, set and production design) to work on a speech tentatively called "Why America is Going to Hell." Bringing him some coffee through a raging thunder storm is maid Camae (Bassett), who shares some cigarettes, and some advice with the preacher.

Directed by Kenny Leon, Bassett brings a lot of humor to the role of the foul-mouthed woman who attracts the eye of King. He likes her style, and she speaks her mind on everything from berating King about cheating on his wife to what he should include in his next speech, like a line that says "F*** the white man." (The audience roared, though this kind of humor is lost on me).

When he's not smoking, drinking or leering at Camae (we have to wonder whether his estate is very happy with this play), King chastises the maid for her blasphemous comments and does offer some wise words about how the nation can fight a war in Viet Nam or spend money to put a man on the moon instead of taking care of so many of its people in need. But just as we are thinking that the sexually-charged banter is one of the most bizarre set ups we've ever seen to give the author an excuse to write a play, it gets even weirder, though I am unable to provide details without including spoilers.

There is a terrific scene where the set splits away to offer video projections and a monologue by Bassett about the path of civil rights throughout history. The original music is by Branford Marsalis, though I must truthfully admit that I don't recall noticing it during the play.

The Mountaintop, which has been playing to sell-out audiences at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, 242 West 45th St., plays a limited engagement through Jan. 15. Tickets are available by clicking here. In addition, prime tickets to The Mountaintop will be reserved for every performance, even in cases when the show is otherwise sold-out, for the low price of $34.50 with 20 Same-Day Reserve tickets available when the box office opens at 10 am (noon on Sundays) for that day’s performance(s).  They can be purchased with cash or a credit card on a first-come, first-served basis.  There is a limit of two Same-Day Reserve tickets per person.

Christians might also like to know:
Language (including the "n" word)
Lord's name taken in vain
During the course of the conversation there is some problematic theology interjected including :
    God is a black woman; God beats people; angels lived previously as humans.

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Gracewell Prodiuctions

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Our reviews are professional reviews written without a religious bias. At the end of them, you can find a listing of language, content or theological issues that Christians might want to know about when deciding which shows to see.

** Mature indicates that the show has posted an advisory because of content. Usually this means I would recommend no one under the age of 16 attend.

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

My Bio

Lauren Yarger has written, directed and produced numerous shows and special events for both secular and Christian audiences. She co-wrote a Christian musical version of “A Christmas Carol” which played to sold-out audiences of over 3,000 in Vermont and was awarded the Vermont Bessie (theater and film awards) for “People’s Choice for Theatre.” She also has written two other dinner theaters, sketches for church services and devotions for Christian artists. Her play concept, "From Reel to Real: The Jennifer O'Neill Story" was presented as part of the League of professional Theatre Women's Julia's reading Room Series in New York. Shifting from reviewing to producing, Yarger owns Gracewell Productions, which produced the Table Reading Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT. She trained for three years in the Broadway League’s Producer Development Program, completed the Commercial Theater Institute's Producing Intensive and other training and produced a one-woman musical about Mary Magdalene that toured nationally and closed with an off-Broadway run. She was a Fellow at the National Critics Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. She wrote reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway theater (the only ones you can find in the US with an added Christian perspective) at http://reflectionsinthelight.blogspot.com/.

She is editor of The Connecticut Arts Connection (http://ctarts.blogspot.com), an award-winning website featuring theater and arts news for the state. She was a contributing editor for BroadwayWorld.com. She previously served as theater reviewer for the Manchester Journal-Inquirer, Connecticut theater editor for CurtainUp.com and as Connecticut and New York reviewer for American Theater Web.

She is a Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a former vice president and voting member of The Drama Desk.

She is a freelance writer and playwright (member Dramatists Guild of America). She is a member if the The Outer Critics Circle (producer of the annual awards ceremony) and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women, serving as Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter. Yarger was a book reviewer for Publishers Weekly A former newspaper editor and graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, Yarger also worked in arts management for the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and served for nine years as the Executive Director of Masterwork Productions, Inc. She lives with her husband in West Granby, CT. They have two adult children.

Copyright

All material is copyright 2008- 2022 by Lauren Yarger. Reviews and articles may not be reprinted without permission. Contact reflectionsinthelight@gmail.com

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Key to Content Notes:

God's name taken in vain -- means God or Jesus is used in dialogue without speaking directly to or about them.

Language -- means some curse words are used. "Minor" usually means the words are not too strong or that it only occurs once or twice throughout the show.

Strong Language -- means some of the more heavy duty curse words are used.

Nudity -- means a man or woman's backside, a man's lower front or a woman's front are revealed.

Scantily clad -- means actors' private areas are technically covered, but I can see a lot of them.

Sexual Language -- means the dialogue contains sexually explicit language but there's no action.

Sexual Activity -- means a man and woman are performing sexual acts.

Adultery -- Means a married man or woman is involved sexually with someone besides their spouse. If this is depicted with sexual acts on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Sex Outside of Marriage -- means a man and woman are involved sexually without being married. If this is depicted sexually on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Homosexuality -- means this is in the show, but not physically depicted.

Homosexual activity -- means two persons of the same sex are embracing/kissing. If they do more than that, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Cross Dresser -- Means someone is dressing as the opposite sex. If they do more than that on stage the listing would include the corresponding "sexual activity" and/or "homosexual activity" as well.

Cross Gender -- A man is playing a female part or a woman is playing a man's part.

Suggestive Dancing -- means dancing contains sexually suggestive moves.

Derogatory (category added Fall 2012) Language or circumstances where women or people of a certain race are referred to or treated in a negative and demeaning manner.

Other content matters such as torture, suicide, or rape will be noted, with details revealed only as necessary in the review itself.

The term "throughout" added to any of the above means it happens many times throughout the show.

Reviewing Policy

I receive free seats to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows made available to all voting members of the Outer Critics Circle. Journalistically, I provide an unbiased review and am under no obligation to make positive statements. Sometimes shows do not make tickets available to reviewers. If these are shows my readers want to know about I will purchase a ticket. If a personal friend is involved in a production, I'll let you know, but it won't influence a review. If I feel there is a conflict, I won't review their portion of the production.

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