The civil rights movement and the about turn in the political posture that resulted have always been inspiring to me.  I’m amazed when I think about people who have been repressed for centuries and how they work tirelessly to evoke non-violent revolution.  Company One’s production of The Good Negro, by Tracey Scott Wilson, is a microcosm of the moiling moments of Civil Rights Movement.  Director Summer L. Williams illustrated the unimaginably raw vehemence of racial astriction in that time period. William’s effective direction was showcased to perfection by the skills and talent of her design team.  Set, lights, costumes, sound and projection were all engineered to authenticate the words of the play-write and the characterization of the actors.  Every aspect of the production worked to establish the confluence of events that told a specific story while also analogizing the entire civil rights movement.  This show, being produced at this time in history is particularly apt.  There are an abominable amount of Americans just coming to accept racial diversity, and an even more humiliating amount of Americans still clinging to the ideals of ignorance.  There is still racial inequality, and there are, now, additional civil rights/liberties that still need to be fought for.  This production was cathartic and instructional for those still waiting for an end to prejudicial ideology and action.

Jonathan L. Dent played the tragic hero of the show, James Lawrence, with sincerity.  Dent brought ingenuousness to the character’s conflict of conviction.  Battling between his faith and desire for freedom and his fallibility as a man and husband, Dent brought a victimless vulnerability to the stage and story.  Dent was flanked by actors Cedrick Lilly as Bill Rutherford and Cliff Odle as Henry Evans, the proverbial angel and devil of Lawrence’s psyche.  Lilly portrayed Bill Rutherford with a naiveté of knowing but not experiencing, which was visibly ground out by the action of the play.  Lilly gave definition to the term supporting role.  With subtlety, he enriched the texture of the story without over-reaching for audience reaction.  Odle was also a charming presence, playing Henry Evans with a comedic touch that allowed for the interjection of humor into a story so mired in misery. The antagonist Gary Thomas Rowe, Jr., as played by Greg Maraio, stood as the symbol of the white southerner of the time.  Maraio avoided caricaturizing, and made prevalent the literal ignorance of an entire people.

The stand-out performers of the night were Kris Sidberry and Marvelyn McFarlane.  These two were the only women in this male heavy cast, but their limited time on stage left me longing for more.  Sidberry captured the self-possessed composure of a political wife, in her portrayal of Corinne Lawrence, while evoking in the audience the character’s true feelings.  McFarlane also displayed composure as Claudette Sullivan.  She, however, kept her aplomb out of fear.  McFarlane played this crucial role with humility.  She was required to touch on the extremes of emotion and the points between, but regardless of her place on the emotional spectrum, her sensitive performance held an engendering meekness.

The quality, talent, and substance of this production were such that writing this review was difficult.  I wrote, deleted and re-wrote it several times before coming to the conclusion that no matter how eloquent I may try to be in describing it, my words could not convey the esteem with which I regard this production, and as a result, the esteem with which I have come to regard Company One.  I greatly look forward to the next production in their season.

Kris Sidberry (Corrine) and Jonathan L. Dent (James)