Life begins with a noise in the dark, a quiet rattle and hum that bursts into a joyful communal dance ended abruptly by violent separation.
From this first myth of creation, to a final heartfelt reunion, Psalmayene 24’s funny, sure-footed staging of Mary Zimmerman’s Metamorphoses at the Folger Theatre reaps the rewards of an inspired premise and well-directed company.
Based on Ovid’s epic tales of gods and man, the play condenses the original poem’s 15 books into a compendium of fables following fated figures like King Midas, and doomed lovers Orpheus and Eurydice. Psalmayene’s production further reimagines these myths as stories set in the African diaspora, performed by an all-Black cast (a first for the Folger).
Given a modern-day milieu, rendered with notes of African art and dance, American pop culture, and witty, accessible humor, this Metamorphoses remixes myths and morality with funk, soul, and hip-hop, and doesn’t miss a beat.
More to the point, the tight, versatile ensemble doesn’t miss a beat of Zimmerman’s archetypal drama, the adventurous direction, or Tony Thomas’ lively choreography.
Mika Eubanks’ boldly cheeky costumes also speak volumes for the show’s array of kings, queens, nymphs, deities, and celestial beings. Jon Hudson Odom, in a blue velvet blazer and jaunty gold crown, limns a gregariously greedy Midas, who’s left with a palpable sense of heartache once his golden wish has been revealed as a curse.
Gerrad Alex Taylor is a gas as the groovy god Bacchus, the foil in the Midas fable. In looks and attitude, Bacchus serves up a disco fantasy, abetted by the wonders Rueben D. Echoles works with wig and hair design.
Musically-gifted Orpheus evokes legends bigger than disco. Portrayed in another compelling turn by Odom, Orpheus is embodied with elements of Prince, Michael Jackson, and James Brown. But music and splendor can shift suddenly to misfortune. And, as Orpheus begs for the life of his beloved Eurydice (Billie Krishawn), Odom, for the second time in the evening, finds the heart in tragedy.
As Myrrha, cursed to pine romantically for her father King Cinyras (DeJeanette Horne), Renea S. Brown finds heart, and the delicate balance of tension and abandon, in the aptly unnerving tale of incest. Horne’s Cinyras doesn’t register the same gravitas, although the actor, as with everyone in the ensemble, has a shot to shine in multiple roles.
Taylor, for instance, follows up his amusing Bacchus with a delirious take on Erysichthon, a man who would ravage the earth or sell his own mother to satisfy his unwieldy appetite.
Yesenia Iglesias offers an ethereal Aphrodite in the shipwrecked love story of Alcyone (Renee Elizabeth Wilson) and Ceyx (Horne). And Manu Kumasi earns laughs for his determined Vertumnus, a not quite master of disguise in pursuit of nymph Pomona (Wilson).
Throughout the show, performer Miss Kitty lends mystery and a sprightly physicality to several roles, including as the silent but powerful god Hermes. As a water nymph, she ushers in a great flood with a dance, trailing her diaphanous blue fabric like waves crashing onto shore.
With such fluid ingenuity and rich imagery — persuasively assisted by William K. D’Eugenio’s lighting — the production traverses the heights of love and depths of loss. Ultimately, the mythical journey arrives at a satisfying end, shoring up the timeless pull of these immortal tales. “Let me die still loving, and so, never die.”
Metamorphoses (★★★★☆) runs through June 16 at the Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE. Tickets are $20 to $84, with an Affinity Night performance on June 7 honoring the LGBTQ community.
God is a vengeful mother in Aleshea Harris' Obie-winning odyssey Is God Is. Staged in boldly stylized fashion by KenYatta Rogers, Constellation's alternately funny and tense new production matches the play's freak with engagingly eccentric characterizations, grotesque imagery, and blood-soaked violence.
Much of the bloodletting comes at the behest of Mother, or She, portrayed by Jasmine Joy with hellfire intensity. She summons twin daughters Racine (Devin Nikki Thomas) and Anaia (Morgan Danielle Day) to her hospital deathbed, where she lies bandaged, horribly burned and maimed.
Studio Theatre has resplendently re-opened The Colored Museum, George C. Wolfe's biting survey of Black American history, myth, humor, and representation in art and culture.
The entrance and stage of Studio's Victor Shargai Theatre comprise the galleries, displaying artifacts on the play's themes, created by students from the Duke Ellington School of the Arts.
Works hung inside the theater, and even the seating, envelope the audience within Psalmayene 24's environmental production, shrewdly designed by Natsu Onoda Power.
The prime exhibits on view at the Colored Museum are eleven brilliantly-written sketches encompassing centuries of Black lives, since African ancestors arrived in America as cargo, up to the modern age of so-called liberation. On ages of perceptions and misconceptions, Wolfe's stories speak truth with lacerating wit, and subvert stereotypes with deceptive ease.
A thunderous rumble of drums beckons us back in time to the beginning of the beat. Played with crisp precision by an ensemble outfitted in minimal tribal costumes, the drums are the heartbeat, the first notes of music and language framing the epic story of The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence.
Joined by an additional cast of singers and musicians, the performers of Step Afrika! beat their drums and, of course, leap, tap, pirouette, stomp their feet fabulously, and, in some cases, split-jump up to the ceiling. World-class ambassadors of stepping, the company -- celebrating its 30th anniversary -- employs an array of percussive dance styles to perform works based on artist Jacob Lawrence's landmark The Migration.
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