Tag Archives: TheatreSquared

Malcolm X & Redd Foxx Washing Dishes at Jimmy’s Chicken Shack in Harlem

On Demand, Play October 25, 2025 Leave a comment

In June of 1943, Malcolm Little and John Elroy Sanford crossed paths as dishwashers in the same Harlem fried chicken joint.  At ages 19 and 20 respectively, they were still finding their footing as Black men at a time when they were encouraged to give their lives for the country, but not being given societal or economic opportunity.  His father having died early and his mother hospitalized after a breakdown, Little was a petty criminal, frustrated to keep finding himself on that path.  Foxy was an aspiring comic who already handled his finances so poorly he was living on a rooftop.  The engaging Malcolm X & Redd Foxx Washing Dishes at Jimmy’s Chicken Shack in Harlem opens an imaginative window into the relationship between these two men long before fame found them.  

Though familiarity with the raunchy comedian and the inspirational Muslim leader is helpful, at heart Jonathan Norton — who won the American Theatre Critics/Journalists’ M. Elizabeth Osborn New Play Award  for Mississippi Godddamn — has here written a thoughtful exploration of friendship.  Though Foxy and Little share concerns, they have divergent approaches for overcoming them.  By turns, they build each other up and tear each other down, eventually bringing out something special in one another that perhaps no one else would unearth.  Always running in the background is the pre-civil-rights society that literally and metaphorically deprives the two of the music in life.  

Squat and expressive, with an ability to swing from insecurity to dominance, Trey Smith-Mills plays Foxy.  The long and suave Edwin Green — who has been with the production since its 2024 Off-Broadway reading — makes a terrific counterpart as Little.  Director Dexter J. Singleton heightens the required physicality and timing in both performances.

Trey Smith-Mills and Edwin Green as Foxy and Little; Photo by Wesley Hitt

Costume designer Claudia Brownlee provides the right style-on-a budget wardrobe, particularly with a red and white suit and outrageous hat for Foxy.  Jennifer McClory’s wigs mimic the chemically treated reddish hair that was popular in that period.  The shabby back-kitchen set with its stained walls and gurgling drain is designed by Kimberly Powers.  Blackouts and hot spots (lighting by Levi J. Wilkins) along with jazz standards and order-up bells (sound by Howard Patterson) work cleverly together to illustrate the passage of long summer days.

Malcolm X & Redd Foxx Washing Dishes at Jimmy’s Chicken Shack in Harlem is a captivating two hander about people you think you know in an era you think you understand.  Above all, it is the evolution of a friendship that reverberated throughout two meaningful lives.  This World Premiere was commissioned by TheatreSquared, and is a co-production of T2, City Theatre Company, Virginia Stage Company and Dallas Theater Center.  The run has been extended until November 2nd.  Live performances take place at Spring Theatre (477 W. Spring St., Fayetteville, AR).  The streaming version is shot casually (odd angles, heads in the way, uneven audio) but is a wonderful option for those with mobility or childcare issues and those of us who live at too great a distance from the the venue.  Content is for mature audiences, with simulated drug use and adult language.  Runtime is an hour and forty minutes with no intermission.  Both live tickets ($$25-$71) and streaming tickets ($25-$35) are available at theatre2.org/jimmys-chicken or by calling (479) 777-7477.

Twelfth Night

On Demand, Shakespeare March 23, 2025 Leave a comment

Twelfth Night is arguably the most lovely of all of Shakespeare’s comedies.  It reflects the same lighthearted and celebratory nature as the Christmas holiday for which it is named.  Set along the sun-kissed coast of Illyria with happily-ever-after always in view, it includes many of the playwright’s favorite motifs — tangled affections, mistaken identify, and class contrasts — and blends them into a frothy mixture.  Now playwright Alison Carey has given it a delicate layer of modern polish, increasing the ease of comprehension while leaving the most memorable lines intact.  Her translation is being produced at TheatreSquared and performed by the National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO) who co-present along with Play On Shakespeare.  Further enlivened by new music soaringly sung by Joyce Meimei Zheng, it’s a delightful family-friendly entertainment.

Nima Rakhshanifar, Karen Li, Eston J. Fung, and Anula Navlekar are among the National Asian American Theatre Company cast members of Twelfth Night at TheatreSquared, now streaming.

At the opening we are introduced to Count Orsino (Eston J. Fung) who pines for the lovely Olivia (Karen Li).  But the lady is in mourning over the recent death of her brother and is not open to his wooing.  She is protected and served by the crafty Maria (Nandita Shenoy).  Living with them is Olivia’s uncle, Sir Toby Belch (Victor Chi), who spends much of his time drinking and playing tricks on those around him.  He hopes his niece will accept a proposal of marriage from his good friend, the sweet but foolish Sir Andrew Aguecheek (Alex Lydon).  The two other members of this household could not be less alike.  Her house manager, the self-important Malvolio (audience favorite Rajesh Bose), is the most humorless man in the realm, while her fool, Feste, (Joyce Meimei Zheng) is often seen around town entertaining everyone with jokes and songs.

Meanwhile, a shipwreck just off shore has separated devoted twins Viola (Anula Navlekar) and Sebastian (Nima Rakhshanifar).  Each believes the other to be drowned.  Recognizing the potential perils of living as a woman alone in a strange land, Viola has disguised herself as a young man and now serves as a page to the broken-hearted Orsino.  When she is sent to court Olivia in the Count’s name in her male garb, she inadvertently wins the woman’s heart for herself.

Vibrantly directed by Aneesha Kudtarkar making her T2 debut, the cast whizzes through nearly 2 ½ hours of poetry, music and storytelling.  An amusingly choreographed duel is a highlight.  Each line is spoken clearly and with natural rhythm.  The set by scenic designer Chika Shimizu provides ladders, platforms, and a bridge that promote physicality and an openness that is bathed by Marie Yokoyama’s seaside-colored lighting.  Costume designer Mariko Ohigashi adorns the actors in warmly colored relaxed fabrics that move with them, further enhancing the ease and fluidity of the entire play.

The welcome comfort is palpable in this Twelfth Night.  While I was anticipating some form of cultural spin, what I saw was a first rate production of an easy-to-like play.  Illyria can be reimagined to be anywhere where the only person who is mocked is the one who stomps on everyone else’s delight.  The point is not what these people look like, but rather the joy they take in each other’s company.  TheatreSquared is located at 477 W. Spring St. in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas.  In person tickets ($30-$60) as well as an on-demand stream ($25/$35) are available on the TheaterSquared website (https://www.theatre2.org/twelfth-night).  Performances continue through Sunday, March 30.

twenty50

Live Stream, Play October 18, 2024 Leave a comment

Oddly, one of the best distractions from the tumultuous election before us comes in the form of a drama about a political contest taking place 25 years from now.  In twenty50, playwright Tony Meneses sets his fresh and calculated thriller in an America in which the southern border is completely closed and Latinos — most of whom have fully assimilated — make up the majority of citizens.  Against this backdrop, farm owner Andres Salazar (who goes by Andy) is running for congress somewhere in the middle of the country.  With his campaign manager urging him to drop references to his background in order to appeal to a wider electorate, he finds himself torn between his traditional mother and his inquisitive daughter who doesn’t know a word of Spanish.  Though the bilingual dialogue sometimes blunts the pacing, it’s essential to the unfolding of the story.  Meneses is drawing on a deeply personal understanding of how much can change in a single generation.  His family moved from Guadalajara, Mexico, and he was raised in Albuquerque and Dallas.  The result of his honest excavation is a fair weighing of the many sides of culture, authenticity, and the desire to belong that are not exclusively LatinX.

In creative partnership with scenic designer Tanya Orellana, director Rebecca Rivas has reshaped T2’s intimate space to represent a house with a sloping roof that engulfs the audience placed on either side of a thrust stage. Lighting Designer Nita Mendoza adds emphasis to this metaphorical container.  The clever use of “farmhands” as stagehands, helps convert the landscape for the final scene.  Within the dwelling, the characters circle one another, trying to find their equilibrium.  Orlando Arriaga makes Salazar both approachable and questioning.  It is his genuine warmth that provides the production with a solid center.  He is particularly strong in exchanges with Isabel Quintero as the mother whose memories of the recent past wash in waves over the present.  Cary Hite as the farm’s manager presents an opportunity for another variation of Andy’s balancing act.  Yet a third foil is Gabriella Perez’s policewoman Lydia, the most obviously futuristic character.  As daughter Jenny, Alyssa Martinez is unnecessarily burdened with a childish wardrobe and mannerisms.  She is best when she leans into the role’s purity instead of relying on these distracting crutches.  Ricardo Pérez Dávila and Freddy Acevedo round out the cast.

Ricardo Pérez Dávila (Sebastian), Alyssa Martinez (Jenny), Isabel Quintero (Irene) , Orlando Arriaga (Andres), Freddy Acevedo (Oscar) | Photo Credit: Wesley Hitt

In a brisk 90 minutes, twenty50 offers a buffet table ladened with food for thought. This is only the second time this play has been mounted and the rhetoric around immigrants has only grown louder and more destructive.  It’s a coup for TheatreSquared and their loyal audience. As the Executive and Artist Directors say, this insightful work “serves as both mirror and beacon.” Note that the content is written for adults, though there is nothing overtly “mature” in the action. 

The best way to see the performance is live for as little as $20, coming face to face with your fellow attendees at TheatreSquared’s Spring Theatre in Arkansas.  But those of us who cannot easily get to downtown Fayetteville should take advantage of the digital tickets to get in on the experience any way they can.  The camera switches house sides in an attempt to bring us fully into the thick of things.  Individual streams are $25 and household streams are $35.  Both types of links are good for 24 hours.  Tickets for performances through November 3 are available by calling (479) 777-7477 or visiting theatre2.org/twenty50.

Responders

Play, streaming June 22, 2024 Leave a comment

As Tucker’s mother sees it, everything happens at the same time: the good, the bad, and the random.  That paradigm is evident in Responders, Joseph Scott Ford’s new play currently running at Arkansas’s TheatreSquared. The good, is the apparent affection the characters hold for one another, even the squabbling exes Daryl and Suzie. The bad is the suicide paramedic Daryl and his newly minted partner Ang have found hanging from a billboard near the highway.  The police who should be first responders are running late because of a flat tire.  The school buses will soon be driving by and Ang — deeply concerned about the impact the gruesome sight will have on the town’s young children — is considering bending the rules and disturbing the scene.  But Suzie, an ambitious local news reporter, needs a big story. She would rather capture every traumatized face with her loyal cameraman, Tucker.  The random will not be spoiled here except to say it completes Ford’s exploration of mental distress through a droll and compassionate lens.  

An Arkansas native, Ford applies a distinctive perspective to rural middle American life that is simultaneously loving and probative. This Oklahoma town is so small that the Uber service is simply “Sandra.”  The contained setting promotes both the closeness and the friction that makes the action and the dialogue click.  The banter is relaxed and humorous even when the situation clearly isn’t.

Director vickie washington, who collaborated with Ford when the piece was being developed at T2’s 2022 Arkansas New Play Festival, returns to the helm.  She leverages the obvious comfort between her cast members, all of whom appeared in previous incarnations of the work.  From the outset, the body remains mostly obscured by a stark and dusty roadside set designed by Sydney Lynne, chillingly a prop more than a person.  The victim’s suit jacket and polished shoes (props by Brodie Jasch) sadly hang on fencing nearby.  Kelsey Claire’s plain-speaking Ang and Bradley Campbell’s world-weary Daryl arrive with the gurney through an aisle between the two perpendicular audience sections, immediately drawing everyone into the action.  The two actors play warmly together and each one is given an intimate scene with Edwin Green’s recently returned veteran Tucker.  The conversation between Daryl and Tucker, built on the awareness that their jobs have warped their senses of humor, is particularly moving.  Though her dialogue also offers glimpses of a tender side, Miranda Jane remains too shrill and edgy to give Suzie the balance that is evident in Ford’s script.  Costume designer Jennifer McClory has taken care to ensure her character literally stands out in fuchsia against the uniforms and earth tones of the others, so this further push is unnecessary.  Levi J. Wilkins’s lighting offers gentle shading where it’s needed.

Bradley Campbell and Kelsey Claire in Joseph Scott Ford’s Responders.
Photo credit: TheatreSquared

By blending clever repartee with straightforward talk, Responders finds the sweet spot between entertainment and message.  It is a true homegrown product marking the fourth co-production of the Fayetteville, Arkansas based TheatreSquared and Arkansas Repertory in Little Rock.  Running time is an hour and 15 minutes with no intermission.  This World Premiere continue through June 30 at the Spring Theatre on 477 W. Spring Street in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas. Tickets are $43-$68.  Digital tickets are available through T2 at Home for just $25.  Though the audio is slightly muffled and best experienced with headphones, it’s a nice option if you are unable to get to a live performance.  Visit https://www.theatre2.org/ for more information and to purchase tickets.  

Chicken & Biscuits

Comedy, Off Off Broadway, Play, streaming May 8, 2023 Leave a comment

Theatre Squared continues to make their season available to a nationwide audience with a lively recording of their opening night of Douglas Lyons’ family dramedy Chicken & Biscuits.   It’s another cohesive and enjoyable ensemble production from the Fayetteville, AK based non-profit and winner of a special 2022 Obie Award. 

I saw a Zoom reading of the work in March of 2021.  As was typical of that time and medium, it was messy, but I enjoyed the interrelationships and the realistic tension between characters.  In its final form, the story unfolds almost entirely in one-on-one conversations, so it doesn’t flow so much as interconnect.  Many of the rough edges have been sanded down so that the understandable conflicts are aired and settled at an almost unnatural pace.   But the comedic exchanges and not-so-gentle ribbing remain in place.  Whether you will find this satisfying or frustrating depends on how much you value resolution over the journey to get there.

Baneatta and Beverly are two dramatically different sisters brought together by the death of their much-loved father.  It is clear from Baneatta’s opening prayer that the siblings are poles apart in style, attitude, and social position.  Quite simply, they drive each other crazy.  They even compete over who can feel more grief over the loss of a parent.  A gap between expectation and reality divide the other family members as well: mothers and children, sister and brother, partners and parents.  But the snipes stem more often from wanting the target to have the best life possible rather than deliberate viciousness.  As one character observes, “miscommunication ruins a lot of love.” 

Director Denise Chapman digs as deeply as she can to find the heart and humanity of each personality.  The vivacious cast brings a warm energy to the entire proceeding.  Robert Denzel Edwards is a stand out as Kenny, in part because his character is given the most vivid speech about his inner life.  With his sincere ability to listen, Edwards helps Justin Mackey as his white Jewish boyfriend Logan and Candace Jandel Thomas as Ken’s wounded sister Simone shine in their scenes togethers.  In another sequence, Maura Gale as Brianna covers 40 years of emotional history, providing a strong core to the plot and perhaps the toughest role.  She plays well against Kathy Tyree and Tameka Bob, respectively keeping Baneatta and Beverly in their defined lanes.  Michael A Jones lends solemnity as Baneatta’s husband Reggie, while Jordan Taylor sits on the other end of the spirit seesaw as Beverly’s Tik Tokking daughter La’Trice.

Photography at Theatre2 of Kathy Tyree and Tameka Bob in Chicken & Biscuits, Fayetteville, Arkansas on April 4, 2023.

As usual for T2, the artistic team supports the overall vision while keeping budget in mind.  Working almost entirely in black, costumer designer Devario D. Simmons gives us terrific textural queues about each character’s dominant qualities.  Marie Laster’s airy church set dominated by a rose window, illuminated cross and arched doorways creates a flexible space that is defined and refined by Athziri Morales’s soft lighting.  

According to American Theatre Magazine, Chicken & Biscuits was the 2nd most performed play across the USA in the 2022-23 season (right behind Clyde’s by Lynn Nottage).  The banter and relatability make for a pleasant viewing experience and sometimes that’s just what’s needed in these psychically exhausting times.  It runs though May 14 at TheatreSquared (477 W. Spring St., Fayetteville).  Live performances are at 7:30pm Tuesday through Saturday with 2pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday.  Digital streamers are available for 24 hours beginning at noon Central Time on the selected date.  Customer service is first rate.  Tickets run from $20-$54 and can be purchased by calling (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org.

Detroit 67 – Fayetteville, AR and Streaming

Play, streaming October 31, 2022 Leave a comment

Playwright and MacArthur “Genius” Dominique Morisseau can weave a richer story with a handful of characters than most people can tell with a cast of dozens.  This makes her a great match for TheatreSquared in Fayetteville, Arkansas: a small space with a worldly audience.  Set against the backdrop of the historic bloody clash between the Detroit police and Black residents, their current production of Morisseau ’s Detroit 67 is all too current in its themes.  To bring in some extra cash, Lank and his sister Chelle are running an off-licensed after-hours bar in their basement.  It is similar to the one that was violently raided by police, sparking five days of rioting that ended in over 40 deaths and thousands of arrests.  As in the play, then-governor Romney had to call in the National Guard and President Johnson provided two army divisions to restore peace.  

Though Morisseau keeps the action confined to the siblings’ basement, she uses exposition sparingly and instead explores the social and emotional impact of the turmoil outside through well-drawn relationships.  We learn that though they are close, Chelle (a simmering Devereau Chumrau) and Lank (Tenisi Davis moving fluidly between tenderness and fury) have conflicting opinions about how to use their small inheritance.  Lank is encouraged in his riskier plan by his close friend Sly (smooth Christopher Alexander Chukwueke).  But his downgrading of the safety net provided by family and friends is challenged by Caroline (pixyish Jenna Krasowski), a young white woman who literally stumbles into his life.  The quintet is rounded out by Bunny (crowd favorite Na’Tosha De’Von), who relishes all  that life brings her way.  Through this battle between dreaming big and playing it safe, Morisseau tells a story that covers race, class, and the lies of the American Dream in a deeply personal and genuine way.  

Christopher Alexander Chukwueke, Devereau Chumrau, Na’Tosha De’Von and Tenisi Davis; photo by Wesley Hitt

Well-timed comebacks and the use of uplifting Motown tunes provide light around the shadows.  The songs of the Temptations, the Four Tops, the Vandellas, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye and others form a bridge between the characters and the audience and momentarily erase all barriers.  It is the soundtrack of a particular time and place, but also a connector to our world.

The staging by director Dexter J. Singleton is somewhat constrained by Baron Pugh’s detail-oriented set.  Look closely at the walls, and Chelle’s and Lank’s childhoods envelop them.  The essential bar, worn furniture, and decor lend an appropriate hemmed-in vibe to the action.  Costume designer Azalea Fairley visually differentiates the characters, giving Bunny bold prints and highest heels, dressing Chelle in muted tones and flats, and displaying Caroline’s petite curves in Chelle’s cast-offs.  Sound design by Bill Toles expands on the wondrous playlist.

I deeply appreciate the considerate and inclusive opportunity TheatreSquare provides to participate in their varied season.  Their modest four-camera set-up always provides an engaging home experience complete with a warm welcome from their staff and volunteers.  Each streaming pass is good for 24 hours.  The instructions are easy to execute and the recording is of above-average quality. 

As the first piece in Morisseau’s Detroit Project, Detroit ’67 is a thrilling introduction to her potent work.  It is available on-stage and via streaming through Sunday, November 6.  Runtime is approximately 2 ½ hours including intermission.  Tickets are available at https://tix.theatre2.org/events and range from $37-$57 for the live show at TheatreSquared in Fayetteville and $25-$35 for individual and household streaming passes.

Tiger Style – Arkansas and Streaming

Comedy, On Demand March 22, 2022 Leave a comment

In Mike Lew’s Tiger Style, Albert Chen is the congenial, underperforming younger brother of Jenny, a first rate doctor with a third rate love life.  The 30-something Chinese Americans share the burden of navigating the chasm between being born in Southern California yet being viewed as exotic in the case of Jenny or muted as Albert is. They vow to get out of their boxes even though they have no experience in out-of-the box thinking.  What they lack in rebellious nature, they make up for in their bond to one another.  But is “you and me against the world” enough of a force to create change? Certainly the characters swing for the fences, going all the way to another country in search of the right tools.  Act II takes place primarily in Shenzhen, China where they have familial roots.  While the tone expectantly shifts, the direction of that shift is surprising and the work veers towards farce.  

Director Chongren Fan expertly steers the action through the varying beats.  The stage is triangular, with two sides often hosting different scenes.  The set by Chika Shimizu incorporates multiple doors and revolving walls that help us move quickly to each location.  These pieces take on a mood elevating function in the more physical Act II.  Simple elements define each location: a Beyoncé quotation over Jennifer’s couch, a chaise in the therapist’s office, and a wooden bar and chairs in the parents’ home. Costume design by YuanYuan Liang is similarly stripped down, with an Oscar the Grouch T-shirt and matching plaid jackets helping to define characters.  Sparkling fabrics make their arrival in the second half of the play when the siblings’ outfits also undergo subtle changes.  While these likely began as budgetary requirements, the effect helps to draw parallels between Jenny’s and Albert’s American lives and their experiences in China.  They are essentially living in the same apartment with the same “baggage.”  Yi-Chung Chen’s light design includes chase lights around the floor tiles which cleverly add definition and sense of place.

Brandon Ruiter, Brian Kim McCormick, and Eileen Rivera perform well in multiple roles, but with little differentiation.  The impact of this creative decision puts the weight of success squarely on the shoulders of the two central characters.  The appealing Hyunmin Rhee plays Albert with warmth and charming bewilderment while the sharp Stephanie Shum finds heart at the center of the frustrated Jenny.  The dynamic between them has the perfect balance of friction and affection.  Making the most of Lew’s nicely crafted banter, the two actors bounce off each other in genuine rhythm that functions as a metronome holding the disparate tones of the work together.  

Stephanie Shum and Hyunmin Rhee in Tiger Style at TheatreSquared; Photo by Wesley Hitt

Tiger Style begins boldly as an exploration of cultural inheritance and racial profiling.  It’s a heavy lift for a generally light script that concludes with physical comedy and word play.  The experience is certainly enjoyable, but lacks some of the lasting impact of Lew’s Teenage Dick.  Performances run through April 10 in the West Theatre at TheatreSquared, 477 W. Spring Street in downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas.  Tickets range from $20-$54 and can be purchased at  theatre2.org.  As an alternative, a 24 hour digital pass starts at noon on your chosen day which is how I was able to enjoy the work all the way in New York City.  Live runtime is 2 hours and 15 minutes (1:54 when streamed without intermission.)