Ain't No Mo'
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Cititour.com Review
Considering that the central conceit of Jordan E. Cooper’s audacious new play, “Ain’t No Mo’” revolves around a plane ride (in the near future) that will bring the last Black Americans back to Africa, I think they should have provided seat belts for everyone at the Belasco Theatre.
Why? You will experience scenes so funny you might fall out of your chair. You will experience turbulence as Cooper delivers painful but necessary truths about how both blacks and whites have contributed to the state of racism in America. You may also want to try to leave your seat when some of Cooper’s sketches stretch on too long. And the reality is, Cooper wants you to be uncomfortable (well, maybe not physically) on this journey; but once you’ve boarded, you are along for the 100-minute ride.
“Ain’t No Mo’” was first seen at the Public Theater in 2019 – also directed by Stevie Walker-Webb -- and now marks the 27-year-old Cooper’s well-earned Broadway debut. It’s a series of interconnected sketches that tackles a variety of heady subjects head-on, from the absurdity of reality television to the concept of white people wanting to be “transracial,” the desire to leave behind the past both literally and figuratively; the idea of preventive abortions (so Black men can be saved from a possibly grim future), and, above all, the actual fear of being given “freedom.”
So, while the work is rooted in plays like George C. Wolfe’s “The Colored Museum,” it is almost Stoppardian in its breadth, use of language and abundance of cultural references. (I desperately wanted to Google so much of what was being said.) But, make no mistake, Cooper’s voice is unmistakably his own.
Indeed, you literally hear that voice, or at least a version of it, when Cooper is onstage as “Peaches,” the drag queen flight attendant in charge of getting everyone – and everything -- on that plane (which is being piloted by Barack Obama and Kamala Harris, and leaving – rather unsubtly – from Gate 1619). Unsurprisingly, Cooper goes way beyond caricature in creating and portraying Peaches, who takes her responsibility to her task with extreme seriousness – and ultimately, extreme consequences.
The piece is being given a first-class production, with Scott Pask unveiling a series of clever sets to serve each segment and Emilio Sosa providing copious costumes that appropriately range from glittery to grim. (I think Sosa, who also costumed “A Beautiful Noise,” may have bought every sequin in Manhattan!)
Above all, though, the play soars thanks to the efforts an unbelievably versatile cast who morph from character to character with mind-boggling agility: Marchant Davis, Fedna Jacquet, Crystal Lucas-Perry, Ebony Marshall-Oliver and Shannon Matesky. Let’s hope theater gets to keep all six of these talented souls -- especially Cooper -- since Showtime, HBO or NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” should want to snatch them up in a millisecond.
Visit the Site
https://aintnomobway.com/
Cast
Jordan E. Cooper, Fedna Jacquet, Marchánt Davis, Ebony Marshall-Oliver, Crystal Lucas-Perry, Shannon Matesky.
Open/Close Dates
Opening 12/1/2022
Closing 12/23/2023
Theatre Info
Belasco Theatre
111 West 44th Street
New York, NY 10036
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