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Inspired by its Homeric influence, black odyssey is Marcus Gardley’s personal reimagination of this classic poem. His take focuses on his people, black Americans, rather than the ancient Greeks. Instead of beginning at the end of the Trojan War, he starts off after Ulysses Lincoln (Sean Boyce Johnson) serves in Afghanistan.
The gods are playing chess with these humans. The sea god renamed Paw Sidin (Jimonn Cole) is furious with Ulysses for killing his son in the war. On the other side of this match is Deus (James T. Alfred) who sends his wife Athena to watch over Ulysses’ family. Paralleling the original tale, Ulysses has to endure a long and perilous journey at sea when the war ended. His Harlem family fears he is dead.
There are many moments of seriousness and drama as one would expect. Amusements are scattered throughout this text as well. Athena is renamed Aunt Tee (Harriet D. Foy) in this version. Deus remarks that he should call her Minerva (the Roman god commonly associated with Athena) “because she works my nerves”. A playfulness imbues this production culminating in a surprisingly appealing musical interlude in the second act.
For this author the American dream is a nightmare “to keep me asleep and broke” adding “now I’m woke”. That word seems to be a lightning rod in today’s contentious society. Conservative leaders and media outlets practically froth at the mouth while ridiculing it as an evil to be destroyed. Here that word brings up-to-date a long arduous journey for a people who endured four hundred years of slavery and its omnipresent aftermath.
Mr. Gardley’s play loosely connects the Odyssey to the epic centuries of the black American experience. One intimate section finds Ulysses encountering a family stranded on a rooftop. Their house is surrounded by water. Surely the government is going to provide assistance. The appalling Katrina imagery your mind brings to this vividly staged scene cannot be denied.
The script contains an uncountable number of references. The people, places and things do underscore the epic nature of the storytelling. They are also tossed out and discarded quickly presumably to mimic the multitudinous details interwoven in the 12,109 lines from the classic poem.
Stevie Walker-Webb directed black odyssey. The performances are strong across the board. Visual tableaus command attention including the ingenious usages of the boat (Set Designer David Goldstein). The tension is palpable and the laughs are big. The play is a wild hodgepodge of ideas and Mr. Walker-Webb is up to the task just as he was with Ain’t No Mo’ this season. I look forward to what follows.
There is a cacophony of feverish debate (to be kind) about diversity in the arts these days. Inclusiveness often materializes as a deafening roar on social media. How to effectively “see” the broad colors of America. Just as important, if not more, is to “hear” perspectives from those whose epic journeys vary significantly from one’s own. Maybe then Ulysses won’t have to wonder why so many people “lose their minds” when they hear the phrase “Black Lives Matter”.
black odyssey is running at the Classic Stage Company through March 26, 2023.