What was it like to be a black, gay teenager in rural Georgia in the early 21st Century?

A Powerful New Drama

What was it like to be a black, gay teenager in rural Georgia in the early 21st Century? What was it like for him to be in love with a white boy whose family had a history of violent racism, including against his own family? What was it like for him to live with his angry violent father? How does family history define a person? These and other questions are explored by an excellent cast of four in a powerful new drama that is layered and complex, and at the same time, completely accessible. The Magnolia Ballet, written by Chicago-based playwright Terry Guest, is a 2022 National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, and the first production of the season for Alleyway Theatre.

Young Z’s family has owned the same plot of land near a marsh full of birds, cicadas, and ghosts since just after the civil war. Their history goes back to west Africa where their ancestor was kidnapped, brought to this country in 1620 and enslaved. Time is fluid as the action goes back to that time through stories of their early history that are woven throughout the play. They are told by Apparition, who is the spirit of Z’s ancestors.

Z is a bright, serious boy, sure of his own sexuality, but unsure of the parameters of his relationship with his best friend Danny. That and his relationship with his terrifying father are what he grapples with as he navigates the troubled waters from boyhood to manhood. Nigel Reynolds is charming as Z. He brings a lightness to his very serious circumstances, while also expressing the depth of his fears, particularly toward his father. When he uncovers a family secret in the old shed outside his house that astounds him, his eyes say everything he is thinking. No words are necessary.

A Story of History, Resilience and Love

Richard Satterwhite is his father, Ezekiel V. The tragedy of violence is that it begets more violence. He explains that cycle in his family in a monologue in which his struggle between his true nature and his cruelty becomes palpable. His is a heart-rending performance that defines who he is, and who he would like to be. He also plays another character, not to be revealed here, that is surprising and amusing at first, then becomes very serious indeed.

That is one of the fascinating things about this play. Just when you start laughing at some witticism or absurdity, the energy shifts and something frightening or horrific occurs. In the Gone with the Wind sequence, Scarlett O’Hara (Nigel Reynolds) appears. She is all southern belle, waving her fan around and flirting with Apparition in a very funny scene, and then it all changes into something else entirely that leaves the audience breathless. This occurs several times throughout the 110 minutes, so nothing is predictable, and the audience is on edge throughout.

Dennis Wilson as Apparition floats around the stage, watching the present time unfold until he breaks into a story from the past that speaks to the struggles he is witnessing. He commands the attention of the audience in monologues that are riveting in the power and intensity he brings to them. He is equally adept at comedy. In the Gone with the Wind sequence, in about five sentences he skewers the story so effectively, no one who hears it will ever be able to think of that film again without thinking of that monologue.

Danny is played by Shawn Adiletta. He smokes a lot of dope, plays video games, flirts with Z, is unsure of his sexuality, and worries that the family curse of violence and hatred has been handed down to him. He questions whether he has that “fire,” and if it will manifest. He also has a complex relationship with his father, a good-old-boy policeman. He expresses all of this with humor, pathos, and passion.

Director Carlos R. A. Jones has assembled a fine cast and uses them to great advantage. The play is well-paced, with no real set changes so the action is not interrupted, and it all builds to a compelling climax.

Fire is a theme throughout the play, from the burning of churches and the old shed in the past, to the fire in the belly that haunts Danny. While fire destroys, it also cleanses and purifies. Which will it be for Z, his father, and Danny?

This is a great story of history, family, survival, resilience, and love, as well as a coming-of-age story about one gay, black teenager in rural Georgia.