NY Review: 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'

August Wilson’s 1982 “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” part of his 10-play cycle about the African-American experience in the 20th century, explores crucial issues surrounding race, religion, sexuality, and art in 1920s Chicago that are just as pertinent today as they were almost a century ago. Director Eugene Nesmith strives to present an authentic representation of the play with his production at New Haarlem Arts Theatre, but his over-thought direction cripples the play’s intended emotional effect.

Set during the Harlem Renaissance, Wilson’s work is both fictional and based in reality, with the real-life blues singer Ma Rainey as the central figure. (The title of the show comes from the song of the same name.) The play takes place near the end of her career, just as old-style blues music is on the way out and upbeat jazz is making its debut. Known for her unpredictability, Ma has yet to arrive at the recording studio when the play begins. Her band, manager, and the studio producer are eagerly waiting for the artist to arrive.

While the band discusses deep-seated racial issues, young trumpet player Levee announces his intended career as a songwriter. In a world run by white men, the four band members struggle to set their path, while admiring Ma’s ability to get exactly what she wants from her spineless white manager Irvin. When Ma does show up, with her stuttering nephew Sylvester and friend—or potential lover—Dussie May, the argument heats up.

Though Wilson’s play is extremely progressive, Patrice Andrew Davidson’s cookie-cutter set looks more like a Disneyland ride than a gritty Chicago recording studio. The actors struggle to fully embody their characters’ arcs, and they have little motivation onstage. One of the largest obstacles is that none of the actors cast as band members are actually musicians. When the music begins, the performers simply hold their instruments while recorded music starts to play. The result is disastrous.

Nesmith overly relies on Wilson’s powerful language rather than creating an appropriate dramatic display of those words. Some actors do manage to shine through, particularly Branden Baskin as Sylvester and Dennis Jordan as studio owner Sturdyvant. The other actors, though talented, come off as misguided. Johnnie Mae’s Ma Rainey is overly domineering and hardly sympathetic, while Reginald L. Wilsom equates volume with power as Levee and could benefit from some quieter moments. Peter Jay Fernandez, Luther Wells, and Mikell Pinkney as Toledo, Slow Drag, and Cutler, the remaining band members, are all endearing, though they, too, have the same motivation issues.

Nesmith handles the story and actors with a self-conscious hand, when Wilson’s famous lines should come across more naturally. The overly stylized moments seem forced, and the debate should occur as easily onstage as it does in modern society.

Presented by New Haarlem Arts Theatre at Aaron Davis Hall (Theater B), 160 Convent Ave., NYC. June 16–July 8. Thu.–Fri., 7 p.m.; Sat., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m. (212) 868-4444 or www.newhaarlemartstheatre.org.