Stage Review - My Lord, What a Night (Taproot Theatre)
Stage Review - My Lord, What a Night
Presented By: Taproot Theatre - Seattle, WA
Show Run: September 18 - October 19, 2024
Date Reviewed: Saturday, September 21, 2024 (Opening Weekend)
Reviewed By: Greg Heilman
Throughout the annals of time, there have been plenty of examples of unlikely friendships. Walt Disney and Salvador Dali comes to mind, as does Helen Keller and Mark Twain. Another friendship that I would have never expected to learn about is that between singer and reluctant civil rights symbol Marian Anderson and one of history’s most esteemed and beloved scientists, Albert Einstein. One evening, after performing near Princeton University, Marian was denied a hotel room, which was common in a time when she was asked to perform for white audiences, but not allowed to share lodging with them. Coming to her rescue that night was none other than Albert Einstein, who invited her to come to his home and stay the night, a sanctuary of sorts. This one night led to a friendship that lasted from that first meeting in 1937 to 1955, shortly before Einstein’s death. The subject of this meeting and the subsequent relationship between these to seemingly disparate personalities is the subject of My Lord, What a Night, the 2021 play from Deborah Brevoort, and chosen by Taproot Theatre to close out their 2024 season. The production, directed by Bretteney Beverly, runs on stage at Taproot through October 19.
As the show begins, we see Einstein escorting Marian into his house in Princeton, NJ, shortly after Marian had been denied lodging at the Nassau Inn nearby for no other reason than her race. The two discuss their careers a bit, but talk more about the unfair treatment that the singer has been getting, despite her talent and demand from the same community that shuns her. What they discover is not just that they are huge fans of each other’s work, but that the pair have a large amount in common, from their favorite composers to a weakness for Swiss chocolate. It’s a relationship that is clearly taking hold, but not one free of its own challenges. Enter Abraham Flexner, a Jew, like Einstein, and the one who was largely responsible for bringing the scientist to Princeton. Flexner, familiar with what it means to have reporters and the gossip mongering public apply judgment based on what they see and not what is true, insists that Marian leave, as, in his mind it would be a travesty for Einstein to be found with “someone like her”. Equally opposed to Marian staying at Albert’s house is Mary Church Terrell, civil rights activist and founder of the National Association of Colored Women, though her reason is a bit different. Mary wants to fight, and wants Marian to join the fight, to return to the Nassau Inn and demand that she be allowed to stay there, but alas Marian doesn’t want anything to do with any fight, or to do with actively participating in the Civil Rights movement. Luckily, from Marian’s perspective, cooler heads prevail and she’s able to take up Einstein’s offer of a safe place to stay, allowing their lifelong friendship to blossom. While Act 1 builds the basis of the friendship, Act 2 picks the story up two years later, in a different stage in their friendship, and a different national and global climate. While Einstein has recently been approached by colleagues who have made a world-changing discovery, Marian is faced with being denied performing to an integrated audience in Washington, DC by the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution). With each at a potential turning point in their individual lives, they turn to each other, as well as Flexner and Mary Church Terrell, to set off events that will change the social and political landscape forevermore.
This well written story presents a different side of these characters than many of us have seen before. Einstein here is personable and funny, he’s got wonderful heart, and of course he’s as disorganized and goofy as we’ve all come to know. But his intelligence is clear, while he seems to bumble his way through his house and his relationship with Marian, there’s always a point, something he’s working toward. Meanwhile, Marian is smart, well spoken, seemingly worldly, but also naive to her place as a symbol in a movement that is bigger than she is. Flexner and Mary Church seem like foils at the beginning, but his scientific mind is always open to change at the discovery of new information and hers is open but challenging to the status quo. My Lord, What a Night is at its heart a story of friendship and what can be accomplished when one opens his or her heart to another and about the power in working together. It’s a solid piece that presents the best of humanity as it deals with some of its most horrific historical events.
The creative team has built a show under Bretteney’s direction that feels like home, Mark Lund’s scenic design makes the most of the space at Taproot’s Jewell Mainstage with a set that is detailed, and dimensional, depicting Einstein’s living room, as well as his foyer and the stairs to the second floor bedrooms. The outside is implied, which is accomplished through Mark’s sound work, the din of reporters awaiting Einstein’s exit from the house for his daily statement, and the addition of a doorbell, phone, and teakettle into the design provides an additional level of realism to the piece. Meanwhile, Brian Engel’s lighting is very well done, nothing too elaborate, mostly subtle, brightly illuminating the stage when the quartet of actors are performing, but softening when there’s a more intimate conversation or poignant moment at play. As I said, it’s done subtlety, but it really works with the overall design. The costuming is also something that works here, credit to Costume Designer Kilah Williams for this. Einstein’s and Flexner’s suits scream academia, while Marian’s and Mary Church’s dresses are both flattering and functional, excellent pieces of art themselves, fitting in perfectly with the color palette and overall style of the design.
But a human story is nothing, of course, without the humans portraying the characters on stage, and this small but mighty cast that Bretteney has assembled is excellent. All of the complex characterizations that I mentioned above are presented so well by this group, Mark Emerson as Albert Einstein, Kataka Corn as Marian Anderson, Andrew Litzky as Abraham Flexner, and Marlette Buchanan as Mary Church Terrell. Mark’s version of Einstein may be the most enlightening that I’ve seen. Many portrayals capture the eccentric scientist, but few capture his humanity so well, his heart, his conflict at what the scientific work of the day is bound to bring about, and full marks to Mark, along with Dialect Coach Dimitri Woods and Vocal Coach Aaron Norman, the accent is spot on for this Einstein persona and Mark maintains it consistently and strongly through the entire show. His Einstein is also funny, and his turn of phrase is uncanny. Kataka’s performance as Marian is intelligent and sweet, an exceedingly respectful tribute to the Civil Rights icon. Watching her character’s growth from Act 1 to Act 2, and through to the end of the show is a pleasure to watch, and while Marian’s confidence grows, and she becomes more solid in her determination, the better Kataka is. Andrew and Marlette are also very talented and good in their supporting roles here. Their performances are both transformational and while neither upstage Mark or Kataka and their excellent performances, they are both solid and strong, equaling the importance their characters have in the lives of Albert and Marian. The quartet works together, their dialogue is natural and they all manage together to help keep the pace of the show on track and the attention of the audience focused.
My Lord, What a Night focuses on the unlikely friendship between renowned physicist Albert Einstein and the reluctant Civil Rights icon and famous contralto Marian Anderson, but it represents so much more. This play shows that in times of crisis, in which social and political climates are charged and we as humans are at a crossroads, it’s only by banding together in love and friendship that we can develop the strength to overcome. This was as true in 1937 as it is today, and My Lord, What a Night is both enlightening and entertaining, well designed and masterfully performed.
My Lord, What a Night runs onstage at Taproot’s Jewell Mainstage through October 19. For more information, including ticket availability and sales, visit https://taproottheatre.org/.
Photo credit: Robert Wade
