With his latest urban stage drama, JeCaryous Johnson gave everyone the stage adaptation of the black film favorite “Set It Off” that they never knew they needed until Sunday afternoon at The Peabody Opera House.
Suspicions and weary were strong after 2016’s “Love Jones: The Musical” pulled a bait and switch. For that play, the title was the only portion of the production that had any resemblance of the film starring Nia Long and Larenz Tate.
It was quite the opposite for Johnson’s “Set It Off.” The play was in fact the movie set for the stage – with some modifications (mostly downgrades) to the script so that it plays to the taste of the urban stage drama audience.
Going in with the expectation of “Love Jones The Musical,” “Set It Off” was a triumph. The drama provided a staging that would satisfy the film fans, and was spiced up with the overt flavor of the urban stage formula.
As with the movie, “Set If Off’ tells the story of four young women with nothing to lose who resort to drastic and dangerous measures to escape their surroundings. Fueled by tragic circumstances framed around women who are criminalized without warrant, the young ladies decide to be what society already accuses them of being as a means to a better life for themselves.
The visual experience of the awful and flimsy rotating set was salvaged by great casting, solid performances with good chemistry between the four main actresses and authentic exchange of energy between the crowd and the cast.
Vivica Fox would have particularly enjoyed seeing singer/actress LeToya Luckett step into the role she originated on film. She was the strongest link in the ensemble that also featured Da Brat, Demetria Bryant and Kyla Pratt, who led the drama in the role of Stoney.
That’s not to say that there weren’t some “extra” moments that urban stage plays are known for. Javon Johnson’s (no relation to JeCaryous) portrayal as Luther was particularly too much, though the performance was more than likely calculated as such to elicit laughs. And a few within the cast – including Johnson – seemed to use death scenes as a cue to do the most, which made events that were tragic in the film feel almost like comic relief for the stage adaptation.
The play – based on a movie that hit theatres two decades ago – featured exchanges between the police and citizens that felt especially timely and relevant in the wake of Ferguson and the Jason Stockley verdict and similar cases around the country.
All the resources that were spared on set design throughout the earlier parts of the production seemed to be reserved for the plays final scenes. The grand showdown between Da Brat’s Cleo character and the police was a visually stimulating exception to the rest of the production. The audience’s reaction to the scene, and the play itself, should be an indicator for JeCaryous Johnson that he knows what his target audience will enjoy.
