I like going to see live theater. For years it was a ritual to see at least two at The Pantages or whatnot. Last year L. and I saw one called The Octoroon which was hot trash. After that she went to see another one called Slave Play and I was very glad not to see that. She thought that my ass would never go see another show with her but I have a tendency to like musicals and such. This week L. got us tickets to this play Blues For An Alabama Sky at the Mark Taper Forum downtown. There were not many blues songs played in this but it was really good. It felt like I watched a really good movie but...live. When we arrived we were able to find easy parking which worried me the entire time we sat in the theater. It felt too good to be true. So we got in, sat in the lobby, and got our seats and kept our damn masks on.
This is a story about people with dreams. So more noble than others. There is Angel. She is a blues singer who gets fired from a nightclub where she was dating a guy running it and drunkenly made a fool of herself after finding out he was marrying someone. She knew she was a side piece but just assumed she would get with him. Her friend Guy (my favorite) is a costume designer that hopes to go to Paris and make clothes for Josephine Baker. They live together and are good friends. I guess. Angel is horrible but in a sometimes likable way. She seems really good at finding people to get her the things that she wants. The night Angel is brought back home by Guy and she is drunk as all hell a dude helps carry her home and goes away.
Across the hall is Delia. She does social work and wants to start a family planning clinic in Harlem. There is a lot of resistance towards this. I liked her. Everyone makes fun of her clothes because she dresses like an old lady. They have a friend named Sam who is a doctor that is either at work delivering babies or out partying and drinking. The next day the dude that helped bring Angel home shows up. His name is Leland from Alabama. This man loves God and religion. As soon as he started talking I side eyed him. Within days it seems he professes his love for Angel because she reminds him of his wife that died giving birth to his son that also died.
Delia and Sam start to like one another which was really nice to see. I was also waiting for something bad to happen because there was a sign that said simulated gun sounds at the entrances and Leland showed Angel that he had a gun. Angel resigns herself to being with Leland as a way to escape and be taken care of because she thinks Angel is never going to Paris. She finds out that she is pregnant and Guy gets a letter saying that Josephine Baker loves his dresses and sends him money to come and work for her. Angel is suddenly like “Fuck Leland! I'm going to Paris!” She guilts Sam into performing an abortion on her and comes back home to tell Guy she is ready. He is horrified but she is like “Deal with it.” She tells Leland who shows up with a rocking chair for her and the baby and says that she miscarried and then tells him the truth and that Sam did it. This is where the gun comes into play.
This was good. Even though there are some heavy topics there was no point while watching that I wanted to check the time or anything. I was sitting next to my lady and some stranger lady and didn't have to fight for space even though the seats were close together. It was my first time in this theater and I liked the sound. Even when the performers had their backs turned I could hear them. L. showed me images and reviews from other states that had this play and I think we had the best one by far in terms of how the stage was set up and length of performance time. No way could I have sat there for three hours. What extra hour was needed?! I got enough of a complete story from the two hours from this. A really good show and if you have a chance to check it out you should. It ain't here for long.
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