Regardless of the title of the production or who’s in the cast, if the terms urban, music and drama appear anywhere within the synopsis, the end result is almost always identical.
The set consists of a couch, the theme includes a test of faith, relationship problems and a happily ever after (with a man and God).
Add stereotypes, slapstick and former film, music or TV stars to the stew, say “abra cadabra” and voila … Urban Musical Drama.
But on Sunday (Nov. 21), JPEK Creative works, under the direction of its founder and creative director Joel P.E. King, is once again doing things differently.
King has his own interpretation of the lucrative, albeit creatively mundane and misguided, genre. For the second time this year, he is presenting his play Real Life to St. Louis audiences. This time, the production will serve as a springboard for a national tour.
“In one particular scene, a resident is being interviewed by a news anchor in response to a crime that happened in the neighborhood,” King said.
“And the character responds, ‘Lady, these streets are a killer with no mercy.’”
While there is music, drama and even dance, the show revisits the term urban. In real Real Life, “urban” implies the gritty experiences associated with the streets.
The show bears little resemblance to those for which the term is commonly applied, often as a description for plays geared towards African Americans that have more to do with finding a man or “getting right with the Lord.”
“My thing is I want to evoke reality,” said King. “Sometimes we have to really see ourselves in order to know that there is a need to change.”
In Real Life, King uses one young man’s struggle with the straight way or the street way as he is forced to make a decision on his journey.
Through the struggles of lead character Ray and the harsh realities of the supporting cast, King presents a production that he hopes will inspire the audience to take charge in taking back the streets and restoring them into communities.
Real Life was inspired by a conversation that King had with an 11-year-old student while working as a substitute teacher.
“My student said, ‘If I leave the ghetto, then I will be a sellout,’” King said. “That’s where this started.”
The conversation stuck in his head as he forayed into writing, directing and producing plays through his company, JPEK Creative Works.
He successfully produced several plays with a variety of subject matter over the past five years, but that little boy’s reality haunted him. The dialogue stayed with him until he created Real Life, which was staged a few months ago at the Grandel.
The response was overwhelming. King pitched the production to producers in Los Angeles, and their reactions led him to re-launch a tuned up version of Real Life to St. Louis again with the plans of taking it on a national tour.
King describes the stories of Real Life as truths belonging to himself, his former students, and others who have witness and fallen prey to the harsh realities of the dark side of “urban” life. While he desires to become the next big thing in “urban drama,” he hopes that his play will be the catalyst for change.
“I want to show people that the way we respond to our situation is up to us,” King said.
“You have the power to create that difference. There are so many things that we’re capable of to create that change, if we just step back and look at what we’re doing.”
JPEK Creative Works will present Real Life at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Sunday, November 21 at the Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square. For more information, visit www.jpek.net.
