Mythical, topical and just plain fun, is the best way to describe Pulitzer Prize finalist Zora Howard’s World Premiere production of BUST, at the Goodman Theatre’s Owen Theatre, now through May 18. Visit GoodmanTheatre.org. for tickets and information.
Co-produced with Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre and produced in association with Sonia Friedman Productions, Khaliah Neal and Thomas Swayne, this World Premiere production features an all-star cast of Goodman, Broadway, and Off-Broadway veterans.
Directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, the play centers around a routine police traffic stop of a well-known elderly resident of Huntsville, Alabama’s Black community. Witnessed by a family from their balcony in the local housing project, they watch as a black and a Hispanic police officer approach the man and begin questioning him. As they attempt to search his car, the situation quickly escalates. From Rodney King to George Floyd, the audience already knows the possible end. With cell phone video at the ready, the onlookers witness a mysterious and unexplained event that sends BUST into the ionosphere. It is a fascinating journey with an entirely unexpected outcome!
“BUST is a meditation on rage,” declared playwright Zora Howard. “What if Black people could use the rage that we carry for our own constructive and collective gain?”
Director Lileana Blain-Cruz further amplified the point. “In BUST, the audience has a real opportunity to recognize themselves in these characters.”
The actors really bring it all home in this electrifying production. Keith
Randolph Smith as the pivotal character, Randall Woods (or, Ron-dell Woods, as his character reveals), brings an authoritative resonance to his role. Smith is a veteran of several August Wilson plays, notably Fences, The Piano Lesson and King Hedley II. There are similar elements of African mysticism at the core of Howard’s brilliant play.
All of the the performers bring their full energy to their roles. Caroline Stefanie Clay, Cecil Blutcher (Retta). Ray Anthony Thomas (Reggie) and Cecil
Blutcher (Trent) truly bring it on home as the central characters.
BUST is much more than simply a play presented on one of Chicago’s premiere stages. It is a cultural phenomenon and an essential statement on the world we inhabit today. Hilarious, poignant and simultaneously deadly serious, BUST is a theatrical experience that will live in memory and spark heated conversation long after the curtain falls. This is a must-see for every thinking person. For tickets and information visit goodmantheatre.org.
