Shirley Jo Finney,
director of the Fountain Theatre’s multiple award-winning production of In
the Red and Brown Water in 2012, returns to direct the second play in Tarell Alvin McCraney's “Brother/Sister
Plays” trilogy. The Los Angeles premiere of The Brothers Size opens June 7 at the Fountain for a limited engagement that must close July
27.
Set on the back-roads of the Louisiana bayou, The Brothers Size follows the path of the recently paroled Oshoosi Size (Matthew Hancock) as he seeks to jumpstart his life. Working in an auto repair shop for his brother Ogun (Gilbert Glenn Brown), however, was not what he had in mind. When his old friend Elegba (Theo Perkins) rolls up, offering a different direction, Oshoosi quickly finds himself torn between his brother, his loyalties and his dreams. It’s an exuberantly theatrical drama that weaves together the pulsing rhythms of the bayou with African Yoruba mythology to create a stylized story of love and heartache. While part two of McCraney’s trilogy stands alone – you don’t need any knowledge of the first (In the Red and Brown Water) or third (Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet) to enjoy The Brothers Size – the three plays exist in the same world. Set in the fictional Louisiana bayou town of San Pere, in what McCraney calls “the distant present,” they share themes, characters and similar theatrical conventions. Dreams seep into waking life.
Set on the back-roads of the Louisiana bayou, The Brothers Size follows the path of the recently paroled Oshoosi Size (Matthew Hancock) as he seeks to jumpstart his life. Working in an auto repair shop for his brother Ogun (Gilbert Glenn Brown), however, was not what he had in mind. When his old friend Elegba (Theo Perkins) rolls up, offering a different direction, Oshoosi quickly finds himself torn between his brother, his loyalties and his dreams. It’s an exuberantly theatrical drama that weaves together the pulsing rhythms of the bayou with African Yoruba mythology to create a stylized story of love and heartache. While part two of McCraney’s trilogy stands alone – you don’t need any knowledge of the first (In the Red and Brown Water) or third (Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet) to enjoy The Brothers Size – the three plays exist in the same world. Set in the fictional Louisiana bayou town of San Pere, in what McCraney calls “the distant present,” they share themes, characters and similar theatrical conventions. Dreams seep into waking life.
“Whose dream is
it?” asks Finney, who received Ovation and Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle
directing awards for her work on In the Red and Brown Water. “The
world of this play is set somewhere between waking and sleep and between the
conscious and unconscious, in the blue-gray world where the spirit lies and
heaven and earth intersect. It’s about transformation, sacrifice and brotherly
love.”
“I began taking old stories from the canon of the Yoruba and splicing them, placing them down in a mythological housing project in the South,” said McCraney in an interview. “The ritual onstage is taking these very old stories, archetypes, myths, and even rumors, and playing them out with new voices, new bodies, set in new and present times.”
The character names in The Brothers Size invoke Yoruba orishas, or deities: Ogun is the god of iron-working, the patron deity of all those who use metal in their occupations. Oshoosi is the divine hunter associated with the human struggle for survival – cunning, intelligent and cautious. Elegba is the guardian of the crossroads of life, but is also well known for being the orisha of chaos and trickery who leads mortals into temptation.
The Fountain’s highly lauded L.A. premiere of the trilogy’s opener, In the Red and Brown Water, was named “Best in Theater, 2012” by the Los Angeles Times, one of the “10 Most Memorable Theater Moments of 2012” by the LA Weekly and “best of Los Angeles Theater 2012” by Bitter Lemons, the website that aggregates Los Angeles theater reviews.
Shirley Jo Finney was honored for her directing work on In the Red and Brown Water with Ovation (her second) and LADCC awards. Her other Fountain credits include acclaimed productions of Heart Song, The Ballad of Emmett Till, Yellowman, Central Avenue and From the Mississippi Delta. In November, she directed Marcus Gardley’s the road weeps, the well runs dry in a rolling world premiere at LATC. Her work has been seen at the McCarter Theater, Pasadena Playhouse, Goodman Theater, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Cleveland Playhouse, L.A. Theatre Works, Crossroads Theater Company, Actors Theater of Louisville Humana Festival, Mark Taper Forum, American College Theatre Festival, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and at the State Theater in Pretoria, South Africa, where she helmed a critically acclaimed production of the South African opera, Winnie, based on the life of political icon Winnie Mandela. For television, she directed several episodes of Moesha, and she garnered the International Black Filmmakers ‘Best Director’ Award for her short film, Remember Me. She is the recipient of the African American Film Marketplace Award of Achievement for Outstanding Performance and Achievement and leader in Entertainment.
Gilbert Glenn Brown and Theo Perkins both return to the Fountain where they performed in In the Red and Brown Water (winners, LADCC award for Best Ensemble). Brown also appeared in the Fountain’s Live from Death Row: The Scottsboro Boys and was seen in TopDog/Underdog at the Mark Taper Forum among others. Perkins began his career on Broadway in a revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; local credits include the world premiere of The Many Mistresses of Martin Luther King at Ensemble Studio Theatre/LA and Coffee Will Make you Black at Celebration Theatre. Matthew Hancock was most recently seen in the Los Angeles premiere of the road weeps, the well runs dry at LATC, directed by Finney.
Housed in a charming two-story complex, the Fountain is one of the most successful intimate theaters in Los Angeles, providing a creative home for multi-ethnic theater and dance artists. The Fountain has won over 200 awards, and Fountain projects have been seen across the U.S. and internationally. Highlights include a six-month run of Bakersfield Mist, written and directed by co-artistic director Stephen Sachs (opening in London’s West End this May with Tony award nominee Kathleen Turner and Olivier and Tony award-winner Ian McDiarmid); The Normal Heart (Huffington Post’s “2013 Top Ten Theater Productions”), Cyrano, an adaptation of the Rostand classic for hearing and deaf actors also by Sachs (LADCC Award, “Outstanding Production”), the Off-Broadway run of the Fountain’s world premiere production of Athol Fugard’s Exits and Entrances; and the making of Sachs’ Sweet Nothing in My Ear into a TV movie. The Fountain has been honored with a Certificate of Appreciation from the Los Angeles City Council for “enhancing the cultural life of Los Angeles.”
Set design for The Brothers Size is by Hana S. Kim; lighting design is by Pablo Santiago; original music and sound design is by Peter Bayne; costume design is by Naila Aladdin Sanders; prop design is by Misty Carlisle; choreography is by Ameenah Kaplan; vocal arrangements and additional music are by Brenda Lee Eager; dialect coach is JB Blanc; assistant stage manager is Shawna Voragen; and the production stage manager is Terri Roberts.
The Brothers Size opens on Saturday, June 7, with performances Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. in a limited engagement that must close July 27 (dark June 19-22 and July 4). Preview performances take place May 30 through June 6 on the same schedule. Tickets are $34 (reserved seating), except previews which are $20. On Thursdays and Fridays only, students with ID are $25. The Fountain Theatre is located at5060 Fountain Avenue (at Normandie) in Los Angeles. Secure, on-site parking is available for $5. The Fountain Theatre is air-conditioned and wheelchair accessible. For reservations and information, call 323-663-1525 or go to www.FountainTheatre.com.
“I began taking old stories from the canon of the Yoruba and splicing them, placing them down in a mythological housing project in the South,” said McCraney in an interview. “The ritual onstage is taking these very old stories, archetypes, myths, and even rumors, and playing them out with new voices, new bodies, set in new and present times.”
The character names in The Brothers Size invoke Yoruba orishas, or deities: Ogun is the god of iron-working, the patron deity of all those who use metal in their occupations. Oshoosi is the divine hunter associated with the human struggle for survival – cunning, intelligent and cautious. Elegba is the guardian of the crossroads of life, but is also well known for being the orisha of chaos and trickery who leads mortals into temptation.
The Fountain’s highly lauded L.A. premiere of the trilogy’s opener, In the Red and Brown Water, was named “Best in Theater, 2012” by the Los Angeles Times, one of the “10 Most Memorable Theater Moments of 2012” by the LA Weekly and “best of Los Angeles Theater 2012” by Bitter Lemons, the website that aggregates Los Angeles theater reviews.
Shirley Jo Finney was honored for her directing work on In the Red and Brown Water with Ovation (her second) and LADCC awards. Her other Fountain credits include acclaimed productions of Heart Song, The Ballad of Emmett Till, Yellowman, Central Avenue and From the Mississippi Delta. In November, she directed Marcus Gardley’s the road weeps, the well runs dry in a rolling world premiere at LATC. Her work has been seen at the McCarter Theater, Pasadena Playhouse, Goodman Theater, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Cleveland Playhouse, L.A. Theatre Works, Crossroads Theater Company, Actors Theater of Louisville Humana Festival, Mark Taper Forum, American College Theatre Festival, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and at the State Theater in Pretoria, South Africa, where she helmed a critically acclaimed production of the South African opera, Winnie, based on the life of political icon Winnie Mandela. For television, she directed several episodes of Moesha, and she garnered the International Black Filmmakers ‘Best Director’ Award for her short film, Remember Me. She is the recipient of the African American Film Marketplace Award of Achievement for Outstanding Performance and Achievement and leader in Entertainment.
Gilbert Glenn Brown and Theo Perkins both return to the Fountain where they performed in In the Red and Brown Water (winners, LADCC award for Best Ensemble). Brown also appeared in the Fountain’s Live from Death Row: The Scottsboro Boys and was seen in TopDog/Underdog at the Mark Taper Forum among others. Perkins began his career on Broadway in a revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; local credits include the world premiere of The Many Mistresses of Martin Luther King at Ensemble Studio Theatre/LA and Coffee Will Make you Black at Celebration Theatre. Matthew Hancock was most recently seen in the Los Angeles premiere of the road weeps, the well runs dry at LATC, directed by Finney.
Housed in a charming two-story complex, the Fountain is one of the most successful intimate theaters in Los Angeles, providing a creative home for multi-ethnic theater and dance artists. The Fountain has won over 200 awards, and Fountain projects have been seen across the U.S. and internationally. Highlights include a six-month run of Bakersfield Mist, written and directed by co-artistic director Stephen Sachs (opening in London’s West End this May with Tony award nominee Kathleen Turner and Olivier and Tony award-winner Ian McDiarmid); The Normal Heart (Huffington Post’s “2013 Top Ten Theater Productions”), Cyrano, an adaptation of the Rostand classic for hearing and deaf actors also by Sachs (LADCC Award, “Outstanding Production”), the Off-Broadway run of the Fountain’s world premiere production of Athol Fugard’s Exits and Entrances; and the making of Sachs’ Sweet Nothing in My Ear into a TV movie. The Fountain has been honored with a Certificate of Appreciation from the Los Angeles City Council for “enhancing the cultural life of Los Angeles.”
Set design for The Brothers Size is by Hana S. Kim; lighting design is by Pablo Santiago; original music and sound design is by Peter Bayne; costume design is by Naila Aladdin Sanders; prop design is by Misty Carlisle; choreography is by Ameenah Kaplan; vocal arrangements and additional music are by Brenda Lee Eager; dialect coach is JB Blanc; assistant stage manager is Shawna Voragen; and the production stage manager is Terri Roberts.
The Brothers Size opens on Saturday, June 7, with performances Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. in a limited engagement that must close July 27 (dark June 19-22 and July 4). Preview performances take place May 30 through June 6 on the same schedule. Tickets are $34 (reserved seating), except previews which are $20. On Thursdays and Fridays only, students with ID are $25. The Fountain Theatre is located at5060 Fountain Avenue (at Normandie) in Los Angeles. Secure, on-site parking is available for $5. The Fountain Theatre is air-conditioned and wheelchair accessible. For reservations and information, call 323-663-1525 or go to www.FountainTheatre.com.
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