Actor Brian White returns to his roots in Je’Caryous Johnson production

“I’ll have about 100 strong that will be in the audience – my dad has a huge family,” said television, film and urban stage star Brian White.

His dad is NBA legend and St. Louis native son JoJo White. A former NFL player, Brian seemed almost giddy as he spoke of his return to St. Louis for a two-show run of Je’Caryous Johnson’s latest stage play, “Things Your Man Won’t Do,” last Sunday, March 8 at the Peabody Opera House.

“I’m excited to get to church – El Bethel Baptist church, where my uncle Dewitt White is pastor – see my family and have them enjoy a show that’s about something positive.”

He spent a nice chunk of his childhood in St. Louis and manages to make his way back about once a year to give talks and make appearances for the sake of community service.

His latest role is in a play set in St. Louis, and the moral of the story is a topic he has discussed during his annual returns.

“Life is about the choices we make, success is about the choices we make and relationships are about the choices we make,” White said. “Je’Caryous has created a meditation that will allow people to enjoy themselves, to laugh, and to walk away thinking  about the choices that they’ve made in their own lives and if those choices are leading to positive results.”

The power of positive choices was a lesson White learned in the parks of St. Louis while learning to fight and protect himself as a young boy.

“I saw my cousins make positive and negative choices,” White said. “And even as a 6-year-old kid, seeing that really taught me that we have the power to create our own future. I think the play speaks to that – you know, that there’s a lot wrong in the world, but we are not powerless to make it better.”

“Things Your Man Won’t Do,” which also stars Tichina Arnold, Leon, Wendy Raquel Robinson and Tony Grant, is set in St. Louis in the midst of the Ferguson protests. But the unrest on the streets is upstaged by complicated relationship dynamics among the ensemble.

“Demetrius is a lot like me before I met my wife,” White said of his character. “He’s indecisive in his choices, and it ends up leading to him not getting what he wants.”

His love interest – played by Arnold – presents Demetrius with an ultimatum. His unwillingness to commit creates a window of opportunity for drama as she weighs a few options of her own.

“You only get one chance at that right woman – if you’re not awake or you’re not paying attention she might sail on through and not stop. That’s what happened to my character,” White said.  

“And in my real life I didn’t make that mistake, and so it reminds me that Brian made that positive choice that a lot of guys didn’t make. Hopefully this play will give guys some food for thought about the women they are dating. If one of them seems special, focus and start paying attention, because it’s rare to find someone that compliments you in all the right ways.”

White’s favorite element of “Things Your Man Won’t Do” is the musical performances by Arnold, Grant and other members of the cast, which he feels is the perfect soundtrack to the inspirational takeaway.

“I’m excited about the timing – that Ferguson is still relevant – and I hope that the message resonates with them as they go back to their own lives and into their communities,” White said.

He also can’t wait to get home because he’s thirsty for a word of his own from his uncle at El Bethel.

“Every time I attend, it revitalizes and reenergizes me for the whole year,” White said. “I don’t get back as much as I’d like, but to get to be with my entire family, that’s what’s going to be nourishing for me.”