Grand Piano

The Piano Lesson portrays African-American life with bravado and honesty.

by Mark Cofta

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Published: Mar 18, 2008

GENERATIONAL DIVIDE: Kala Moses Baxter, Harum Ulmer Jr. and Julian Rozzell Jr. grapple with the worth of a family heirloom in Arden Theatre Co.'s production of The Piano Lesson. (CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION)

We can proclaim the importance of August Wilson's Pittsburgh cycle — his decade-by-decade portrayal of African-American life in his native city — but the proof lies in the playing: Witness 1990's The Piano Lesson in an enthralling revival by the Arden Theatre Co.

Philadelphia's Walter Dallas stages The Piano Lesson with the larger-than-life bravado that makes Wilson's wordy-but-never-tedious scripts sing, particularly presenting its supernatural aspects without restraint or apology.

Boy Willie (dynamic Kes Khemnu) wants to buy the land his ancestors worked as slaves, just as soon as he sells the family piano. Sister Berniece (Kala Moses Baxter, in an extraordinary performance, even if she hadn't taken the role a day before opening) refuses to part with the heirloom, however, even though she no longer plays it.

Wilson teases out the piano's fascinating history, gradually revealing how, as Berniece says, it's "got blood on it." But there's more at stake than the ornately carved upright: Boy Willie's willing to sell their past for land-owning independence, while Berniece's respect for its painful history makes her want to keep it. Like dueling sermons, Berniece's traditional, God-fearing views (though she's an early feminist, here in 1936, protesting, "Are you telling me I can't be a woman unless I've got a man?") clash with Boy Willie's gospel of the Angry Man, who sees freedom as the best revenge.

Refereeing their intense sibling warfare are Uncle Doaker (Julian Rozzell Jr.); Boy Willie's naïve buddy, Lymon (Yaegel T. Welch); boozy gambler Wining Boy (Harum Ulmer Jr.); preacher Avery (Brian Anthony Wilson); and Berniece's daughter Maretha (Chioma Dunkley). Dallas' production never falters, even while Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning script indulges in stories, dreams and songs. These people are so warmly alive that we could watch them another three hours, easy.

Amid the domestic reality on Donald Eastman's tall, handsome set is the piano's eerie presence, made big (but not silly) by Curtis V. Hodge's lighting and Jorge Cousineau's sound; whenever Boy Willie tries to move it, the piano creaks and groans as if ghosts struggle against his determination.

By the end, we all understand the price, and the lesson. Moreover, we love these intense, imperfect characters. Wilson fans will not only want to rush to the Arden's superlative production, but also to compare it to the upcoming Delaware Theatre Co. version (April 9 to 27).

(m_cofta@citypaper.net)

The Piano Lesson Through April 6, Arden Theatre Co., 40 N. Second St., 215-922-1122, ardentheatre.org.

 

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