King Hedley II (review)

 Spoilers ahoy!  

Curiously, I have never seen a bad production of any play written by the late August Wilson.  Not sure why.  But it remains a lovely detail in my life in theatre--which I may have just cursed by mentioning it.

King Hedley II, like the vast majority of his "American Cycle," takes place in the Hill District of Wilson's native Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  This one takes place squarely in the 1980s, when Reagan was President and White  Capitalist America was feeling especially good about itself while African America struggled.  One part of that struggle hinged (and hinges) upon identity.  Part of that in turn, and I would argue is a major theme in this play, is the effort to learn what it is to be a Man--man as in hero, man as in King, man as in father and son and husband and worker and warrior, avenger, wise man, judge, prophet, and the heir of all the generations past as well as present.  It emerges as a profoundly Sophoclean work, winding together the day to day and the mythic into a tragedy which somehow feels triumphant.

Our central character is literally named King Hedley (Aaron Jennings) who seeks to navigate the many roles to which he was born.  His best friend is simply known as Mister (Christian Henley) who remains loyal but frankly lacks King's vision and discipline.  His wife Tonya (Kacie Rogers) struggles to endure her fear of where his pride might lead him, amid many other terrors as she confronts have another child when she sees the world as a hungry jungle she herself only barely survives.  Likewise we have Ruby (Veralyn Jones) who is King's mother, although who did not raise him--a fact she deeply regrets, not least because she doesn't really know how to be his mother now.  Adding to the cauldron are Elmore (Ben Cain) Ruby's former beau, a skilled and charming con man eager to reconnect with her, plus Stool Pigeon (Gerald Rivers), a next-door-neighbor given to visions and dream like insights into the world.  A bit of a prophet is Stool Pigeon, a divine fool.  Capital D.  Capital F.

But all that barely scratches the surface of these characters, all of whom keep revealing amazing insights and facets on a scale truly vast.  In fact one of the sure signs of how very fine these performances--and how excellent the direction by Gregg T. Daniel--shows in how every character constantly keeps us guessing.  I never knew precisely what would happen from any of them.  Each word, gesture, and deed startled, yet also in retrospect seemed obvious, even perfect.  Wilson deserves plenty of credit for that, but the words of the dramatist remain dead without the actors breathing life into them.

Which this cast does.  Often delivering long, heart-rending monologues to one another, portraying the shape and timbre of their lives out of a very real need.  Shakespeare has such speeches, but only sometimes to they sum up entire lives as so many in this play do.  Imagine if you will modern versions of "To be or not to be" plus "What is a Jew" and "She should have died hereafter" plus at least half a dozen more.  Add to that something Biblical and Mythic enacted before our eyes, echoing within our ears, striking deep into our very hearts.

King Hedley wants to be great.  But what does that mean?  Everyone wants to tell him precisely what to do, and most just come out and tell him.  Most complain about how he never seems to listen, yet that soon proves just wrong.  He listens.  He often makes mistakes.  He learns and tries to grow.  He also succeeds far more than one expects or hopes for, but not in any simple way.

Life is rarely simple.  Greatness even more so.  That includes great theatre, like this magnificent experience.

King Hedley II plays until April 28, 2024 with performances at 7:30pm on some Thursdays (April 11 and 25), 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays, 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays at A Noise Within, 3352 E Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107.