Cast of Knock Me A Kiss
(top l-r) Keir Thirus, Ashlee Olivia and Jason Mimms
(seated l-r) Ben Guillory, Toyin Moses and Rosie Lee Hooks
By Darlene Donloe
‘I like cake, And no mistake. But, baby,
if you insist, I'll cut out cake, Just for your sake. Baby, come on, Knock me a
kiss. I like pie. I hope to die. Just get a load of this, When you get high,
Doggone the pie. Baby, come on, Knock me a kiss’.
Those are the
opening lines to the song, Knock Me A
Kiss, which was recorded by several artists over the years including B.B.
King, Louis Jordan, Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Krupa and Jimmie Lunceford, who recorded
it in 1942.
Charles Smith’s
play, Knock Me A Kiss, currently
enjoying a successful run at the Los Angeles Theatre Center through May 4, is loosely
taken from that song of the swing era. The song is referenced by Lunceford’s
character in the play.
The Robey
Theatre production, which is a Southern California premiere engagement, is,
thus far, one of the best plays of the season.
Directed crisply
and fluidly by Dwain A. Perry and starring an exceptional ensemble that
includes Robey Theatre Co-Founder Ben Guillory and veteran actress Rosie Lee
Hooks, Knock Me A Kiss tells the
story of the failed marriage between NAACP co-founder W.E.B. Du Bois’ daughter,
Yolande, and popular Harlem Renaissance poet Countee Cullen. The play is a
fictionalization based on actual people and events.
(l-r) Toyin Moses and Jason Mimms
The show takes place
in 1928, when, Jimmie Lunceford (Keir Thirus), a rising bandleader at the time,
was dating Yolande (Toyin Moses). Wanting to take the relationship further and
even proposing marriage, Lunceford is kicked to the curb by Yolande, who wants
to marry someone more befitting her social and political stature. Enter the
single and eligible Countee Cullen (Jason Mimms) a refined, respected,
handsome, educated and popular man-about- town. The impending nuptials between
the two powerhouses is considered the social event of the season. The first of
its magnitude, the union is deemed Black American royalty at the height of the
Harlem Renaissance.
After the
marriage, things between a free-spirited Yolande and the reserved Countee
quickly begin to unravel. When Countee reveals he has affections for someone
else, Yolande is heartbroken, then devastated once she learns with whom.
Smith has
written a wonderful, juicy and captivating script about love, sacrifice, betrayal,
jazz, rivalry, ambition, acceptance and the social graces. The dialogue is
brisk, witty, refreshing and feels authentic. The play is both dramatic and
comedic, which actually works perfectly for some scenes – most notably when
Lunceford discovers Yolande is seeing another man. If you have any problems
with the ‘N’ word be warned that the word flows freely by the Lunceford
character. Although W.E.B Du Bois
is obviously a central character, Smith’s play isn’t so much about his genius
and accomplishments so much as it is about his daughter, Yolande.
Perry has
assembled a cast that is worthy of Smith’s words. With no weak link in the
chain, Perry directs a show that flows with an effortless pace.
Keir Thirus, as
the always-ready-for-a-party Jimmie Lunceford, nearly steals the show with his easy
cadence, good looks, charm, clever repartee and resolute intention.
Ben Guillory
gives a strong performance as the conservative and sure-footed activist W.E.B.
Du Bois. Both the dialogue and
Guillory reveal Du Bois’ shortcomings as both a husband and as a father. He’s a
man willing to gamble away his daughter’s happiness for the cause, or what he
deems is the better good.
(l-r) Toyin Moses and Ashlee Olivia
Rosie Lee Hooks
is unforgettable as Nina Du Bois. Giving her character meekness and naivete,
Hooks leaves room for Nina’s strength and savvy to shine through.
Jason Mimms
gives a steady performance playing Countee Cullen as both a ladies man and a
man’s man.
Ashlee Olivia is
a brilliant and hilarious standout as Lenora, Yolande’s flashy and worldly
friend.
Toyin Moses
shines brightly as a sturdy, but complex Yolande, who eventually becomes a
lonely soul. Marching through life as the confident, devoted daughter of one of
the country’s first black public intellectuals, Yolande tries to play both ends
against the middle. While she desires the attention of a financially strapped,
but always swangin’ musician like Lunceford, she longs for the status of a scholar
like Cullen. To her surprise, she
finds she can’t have her cake and eat it to. Although she thinks she knows what
she wants, she’s left perplexed once she actually gets it.
All the pieces
come together in this production.
Knock Me A Kiss is a sturdy enough story that is hitting
on all cylinders.
Knock Me A Kiss debuted in Chicago and was subsequently
produced in Cleveland, Houston, For Worth, Miami, New York, Sacramento, and at
the National Black Theatre Festival in North Carolina.
Knock Me A Kiss, written by Charles Smith and directed
by Dwain A. Perry, stars Ben Guillory, Rosie Lee Hooks, Jason Mimms, Toyin
Moses, Ashlee Olivia and Keir Thirus.
Approximate
running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes, including intermission.
LOUIS JORDAN’S KNOCK
ME A KISS:
On the DONLOE
SCALE: D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likeable), O (OK) and E
(excellent), Knock Me A Kiss gets an
E (excellent).
Knock Me A Kiss, Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 Spring
St., Los Angeles, 8 p.m., Thu.-Sat.; 3 p.m. Sun. through Sun., May 4. $10-$30; (866) 811-4111 or
www.thelatc.org
No comments:
Post a Comment