A Strange Loop
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Cititour.com Review
Michael R. Jackson already has a boatload of awards, and he may well earn one or two more for “A Strange Loop,” his often-extraordinary new musical, now bowing at Playwrights Horizons in association with Page 73 Productions, under the assured direction of “Be More Chill” helmer Stephen Brackett. And while I don’t think there’s a trophy invented it for yet, the one Jackson truly deserves is for being “Most Self-Aware.”
Just minutes into this audacious show, his protagonist and quasi-autobiographical alter ego Usher (the amazingly committed Larry Owens) – an usher at an unnamed Disney show (it’s “The Lion King”) who is desperately trying to write a musical called “A Strange Loop” -- expresses these thoughts out loud: “No one cares about a writer who is struggling to write/they’ll say it’s repetitious/and overly ambitious.”
And, he’s right, at least in small part. This 90-minute adventure in self-doubt and self-loathing can ultimately feel both repetitious and overly ambitious, not to mention deeply offensive to some audience members (due to its frequent use of the ‘N’ word, more four-letter words than any David Mamet script and a rather realistic simulation of gay anal sex, not to mention an insult about Beyonce!)
But, on the most important point, he’s dead wrong. Jackson’s greatest gift (in addition to penning remarkable songs that echo Sondheim, Larson and others of various genres at their best) is in making us care deeply about Usher. We sincerely hope that all will turn out well for this self-proclaimed “black, queer ugly man,” who has let his own damaged self-perception, his concern with societal expectations, his tendency to over-think everything, and, above all, his unresolved relationship with his church-loving, Tyler Perry-worshipping, AIDS-fearing Southern parents block all forms of authentic personal expression, whether on the stage or in the bedroom.
Usher’s story is not, as one might expect, told in monologue form (although Jackson says in an author’s note that the piece started that way many years ago). Instead, Owens is constantly surrounded by a superb ensemble of six actors (Antawynn Hopper, James Jackson Jr., L. Morgan Lee, John-Michael Lyles, John-Andrew Morrison and Jason Veasey), who seamlessly portray not just the damaging thoughts inside Usher’s head, but a wide variety of characters (white and black) with whom he interacts. Costumed sometimes simply, sometimes skimpily and sometimes elaborately by the great Montana Levi Blanco and executing Raja Feather Kelly’s clever choreography on Arnulto Maldonado’s seemingly sparse set, these versatile performers deserve a show of their own.
But Jackson clearly knows where his focus belongs -- on someone who is simultaneously desperate to fit in, yet smart enough to hold on to his own individuality (which includes an “inner white girl” who favors Joni Mitchell and Liz Phair over Rihanna, and being a gay man who favors lifelong commitment over drug-fueled hookup.). Indeed, the brilliance of this unusual piece is, that despite Usher’s specific situation, “A Strange Loop” is likely to resonate with anyone of any age or any race who has struggled (or is still struggling) to accept one’s own truth and make one’s own way in the world.
By Brian Scott Lipton
Visit the Site
https://www.playwrightshorizons.org/
Cast
Antwayn Hopper, James Jackson, Jr., L Morgan Lee, John-Michael Lyles, John-Andrew Morrison, Larry Owens, and Jason Veasey
Open/Close Dates
Opening 6/17/2019
Closing 7/28/2019
Theatre Info
Playwrights Horizons
416 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
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