“Ma Rainey is a kind of jazz riff,” said Ed Smith, director of the Black Rep’s production of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, which opens this weekend.
“August is so great with characters, and every character gets a chance to show off – they get a solo by telling their story.”
The play revolves around a Southern blues diva who comes to Chicago to record in the roaring 1920s.
“There’s this great monologue about the good times,” Smith said. “It says, ‘We talk about the good times and we all want to have a good time, but no one thinks about our children because we are all too busy having a good time.’”
With his cadence and the way he slammed down on the phrase “good times,” it was like Smith was serving a riff of his own.
“The only reason I’m in theatre is because I’m not a jazz musician,” he said.
“I look for the kind of things that can move like music, and my God August does it – especially if you follow jazz and blues. It’s hard to sit down and read it. I have to read it out loud so I can get that da-da-da-da-da and boom-boom-boom-boom.”
As the first in Wilson’s cycle of plays that cover each decade of black life in the 20th century, Smith said, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom has special significance.
“This play is a much different play than any of the others, and I say that in a positive way,” Smith said. “It shows that he was a true writer. You’re dealing with all of this great storytelling.”
He said his job as director is “to make sure that the production honors the words of the playwright.”
“As we were working on this play I told the actors to be truthful to the words,” Smith said. “If you are truthful to the words, you can’t go wrong. When you start listening, that’s when you find the character. It’s all about the words.”
In the play, Wilson introduces his recurring themes.
“In all of his plays, he manages to say in some form or another that you can’t move forward until you are aware of where you come from,” Smith said. “You have to know your past and the present – to think about what you are doing now and what you have to do to move into the future.”
He can speak from experience. Smith has directed seven of the 10 plays that make up Wilson’s cycle in his nearly 50 years of directing theatre, including four years with the Black Rep and its founder Ron Himes.
“Here is Ron is dedicated to the work, and the audience loves the work so it gives you a chance to stretch out,” Smith said.
The Black Rep – only the second theatre company to produce Wilson’s complete 10-play Pittsburgh cycle – plans to begin the cycle again with this production of Ma Rainey.
Further showcasing its commitment to Wilson’s work, The Black Rep will host a special panel discussion to illustrate the power of August Wilson’s language on Monday, April 16.
Himes said, “As we begin to explore this historic August Wilson 10-play cycle once again, it’s important that we recognize and address the power of Wilson’s language and understand the impact it has on the dialogue we undertake today – both in the theatre and on the street.”
The panel will include John Baugh of Washington University, Jonathan C. Smith of St. Louis University and the Reverend Traci de Von Blackmon, Pastor and Teacher at Christ the King United Church of Christ.
“Look at what August did for American Theatre with this series – and not just black theatre,” Smith said. “And the thing is, after he wrote it he passed away. He was here, he did his mission and God said, ‘Okay, it’s time for you to go.’”
The Black Rep’s production of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom runs April 11- May 13 at The Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square. The panel discussion will take place on Monday, April 16, at 7 p.m. at The Grandel Theatre. The panel discussion is free and open to the public. For more information or tickets to the show, call 314- 534-3810 or visit www.theblackrep.org.
