KCMETROPOLIS.org
Kansas City's Online Journal of the Performing Arts

The cast embraced the emotional complexity and mythic qualities of this Pulitzer Prize-winning play that explores the history and relationships of an African-American family during the 1930s.  Set in Pittsburgh, August Wilson’s hometown, the play also touches on the cultural disparity within the family, with some members remaining rooted in the South and others embracing the new environment of the North. 

The production was tremendous, possibly the best I’ll see all season. The cast layered tension and humor throughout, and the design of the show is superb. Director Karen Paisley fully utilized the stage, as her actors paced and circled, drawn in towards the piano, located center stage against a worn, yet tidy and homey background.

The play centered on the characters’ drastically varying opinions about just what to do with this family heirloom piano, an exquisitely carved piece that traces the family history back through their ancestors’ days as slaves. Siblings Boy Willie and Berniece each have legitimate claims to the piano, though neither will listen nor even consider the other’s views, and this tension is what drives the play. Little by little, the history and other family secrets were revealed to two outsiders, allowing the audience in on the mystery as well. 

Boy Willie wants to sell the piano to help him buy the land where their ancestors lived and worked as slaves. Mykel Hall portrayed Boy Willie with an irrepressible energy, a fast-talking, hard-working, big-dreaming kind of guy, one who uses a raised voice as a debate tactic, unwilling to listen to advice. 

Berniece, as played by Donette Coleman, has no trust in her brother, blames him for the death of her child’s father, and is as stubborn and unrelenting as he is, unwilling to easily reveal the deep seated reasons she refuses to relinquish the instrument. Coleman filled the lone strong female role with a powerful intensity, extremely self-controlled and with plenty of backbone to deal with the bunch of sometimes hapless males that make up her family. 

The dynamic that Hall and Coleman created continuously developed into a sizzling friction well through the final scene.

Harvey Williams played Doaker, uncle to Boy Willie and Berniece, a long time railroad man.  Williams’ performance was richly subtle as the overlooked family member involved in the history and drama of the piano. As embodied, the character seemed pliant, yet ultimately proved sturdy and steadfast. Berniece’s suitor Avery was played by Theodore Hughes as a hometown boy with a vision, literally, to start up his own congregation. His pursuit of Berniece is what allows the audience to see her steely core, as she deflects his overtures, despite agreeing with his cause; she does not require the protection he wants to provide. Hughes played Avery as the friendly and constant companion who was also learning to find his path. 

Comic relief arrived via the characters of Lymon, a friend of Boy Willie’s, and Wining Boy, the ne’er-do-well uncle and black sheep of the family. Desmond Jones played Lymon as a sweet and easily swayed family friend, always on the lookout for women, never quite succeeding. Ronald McFadden played Wining Boy aptly, entering the play unexpectedly, flush with cash, conning drinks, and glad-handing with a winning banter. 

The additional female roles worked in contrast to Berniece. As Berniece’s daughter Maretha, Maya Hill looked insecure among the stronger players, and yet more mature than the 11-year-old character she was playing. Sherri Roulette-Mosley’s Grace, a good-time girl brought home by Boy Willie, exemplified the party girl of the era.

There was one awkward moment, when Berniece prepared her bath while conversing with Avery, finally revealing why she won’t consent to sell the piano. The dialogue explained Berniece’s unwavering conviction; but the shifting and inconsistent movement distracted from this important revelation.

However, the fantastical climax brought together all the play’s threads and culminated in emotional breakthroughs from Berniece and Boy Willie—and break through they did, with raw and physical performances from Coleman and Hall. Lighting and sound design became major players during this terrifically harsh scene as they exorcised the demons. The sudden release and swift conclusion brought the stunned audience to their feet.  

REVIEW:
Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre
The Piano Lesson
Ran February 17 through March 6 (reviewed Thursday, March 3)
3614 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
For more information, visit www.metkc.org or call 816-569-3226

By Libby Hanssen

Traditional and New Classical, Theatre Contributor

Libby Hanssen holds degrees from University of Missouri-Kansas City (M.M.) and Ball State University (B.M.) in trombone performance and also studied music education at Indiana University. She has studied trombone with Carl Lenthe, JoDee Davis, John Seidel, John Huntoon and Denis Wick, and music education with Brent Gault, Estelle Jorgensen and Katherine Strand.

While at IU, she taught classes in general music, focusing on listening skills and music fundamentals through practical music usage and exploring new sound constructions. During the course of her studies at UMKC, she performed with many ensembles, including the Conservatory Orchestra and Musica Nova. She has also performed with the Kansas City Puccini Festival, the People's Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City, the New Jazz Order, the Indiana Wind Symphony and the Muncie Symphony Orchestra.

In 2010, she was a fellow (one of 23 journalists selected from across the US) for the seventh annual National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Arts Journalism Institute in Classical Music and Opera at Columbia University’s Journalism School in New York City.

Most of her free time is spent with her three boys (son, dog and husband) and camera, exploring the many fine aspects of Kansas City living. She enjoys listening to KKFI - Kansas City Community Radio and KCUR - Kansas City's NPR station, visiting Kansas City's fine collection of museums and galleries, and scavenging in thrift and antique stores to add to her collection of toy instruments.

She writes for the joy of words and the process of constructing a story, maintaining the blog Proust Eats a Sandwich (www.prousteatsasandwich.wordpress.com). She is working on her first book: Murray Goes to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.