‘Brother/Sister’ trilogy illuminates African-American lives

Princeton's acclaimed McCarter Theatre premiere reopens at the Public Theater

BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

OFF BROADWAY REVIEW

First presented by McCarter Theatre in Princeton last spring, "The Brother/Sister Plays" now arrives with most of its original ensemble at the Public Theater.

Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney sets his impressive trilogy in the bayou country down south, but don't expect any magnolias and moonshine. These modern-day plays concern poor African-American people living through lean times. A quietly mythic quality to McCraney's frequently poetic writing gives stature to his sorrowful stories.

The first and finest of the three, "In the Red and Brown Water," centers on Oya (the touching Kianne Muschett), a long-distance runner who sacrifices a scholarship to care for her dying mom. Sidelined in the projects, Oya is romanced by bad boy Shango (Sterling K. Brown) and nice guy Ogun Size (Marc Damon Johnson). She thinks having a baby — like all her girlfriends — might brighten her life but in the end, little turns out right for Oya.

Covering several years, Oya's tragedy is fluently related in many episodic snatches interspersed and at times brightened by music and dancing. Characters often speak their stage directions; a device that frames their conversation and distances the drama from grubby realism.

The play's essentially dreamy nature is imaginatively conveyed by director Tina Landau, who wisely uses lighting to create many different locations within an open space. Dressed in creamy colored clothes, the actors tenderly express the humor and pathos within their characters. Occasionally ritualistic staging underlines the work's mythic quality.

The remaining plays in the trilogy are paired together and staged by Robert O'Hara, who takes a sharper approach to McCraney's writing. The lighting is generally brighter and, especially in the final play, the characters' clothes become nearly cartoon-like in color and detail. While the characters continue to annotate their moves and gestures, the acting shows a more realistic edge than previously.

Set a couple of years after the first play, "The Brothers Size" regards Oya's former swain Ogun (Johnson), owner of a small garage, and his younger sibling Oshoosi (Brian Tyree Henry), who's just out of prison. Their conflicts increase with the troubling appearance of Elegba (Andre Holland), Oshoosi's former prison buddy and a carefree scamp who grew up during "In the Red and Brown Water."

"Marcus; or The Secret of Sweet" regards the now-dead Elegba's son Marcus (Holland), a teenager coming to grips with his gay sexuality. The play answers mysteries left by "The Brothers Size" and closes the trilogy on a somewhat apocalyptic note as a hurricane bears down.

Kimberly Hebert Gregory's feisty know-it-all auntie, impish Nikiya Mathis as two teenagers of successive generations and Heather Alicia Simms as Oya's mom and later as Marcus', are other vivid performances among the excellent ensemble who go with the mutable flow of McCraney's text.

Only 29, McCraney reveals a distinctive style in "The Brother/Sister Plays" that transforms very ordinary people into larger than life characters. It will be interesting to see in the future whether McCraney's writing develops further or if he will maintain a similar approach when telling other stories.

"The Brother/Sister Plays" continues through Dec. 13 at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette St., New York. Call (212) 967-7555 or visit www.publictheater.org.