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These are the choices faced by a Civil War slave in
Suzan-Lori Parks’ “Father Comes Home From the Wars, Parts I, II, III,”
presented by American Conservatory Theater.
But there’s far more to this powerful drama, which
is loosely based on Homer’s “The Odyssey.”
The slave, Hero (James Udom), has been promised his
freedom by his master, the Colonel (Dan Hiatt), if he will join the Colonel in
fighting for the Confederacy. Hero is torn because he wants to stay home with
his beloved Penny (Eboni Flowers), and he doesn’t want to support the wrong
side.
As the play opens, four slaves -- played by Gregory
Wallace, Rotimi Agbabiaka, Britney Frazier (filling in for Safiya Fredericks)
and Chivas Michael -- along with two others, Steven Anthony Jones as the Oldest
Old Man and Julian Elijah Martinez as Homer, are betting what Hero will decide.
Apparently the prospect of freedom is stronger than
the pull of love, so Hero dons a castoff gray Confederate jacket and follows
the Colonel.
In the next scene, the Colonel has captured and
caged a wounded Yankee soldier, Smith (Tom Pecinka). The drunken Colonel tries
to get Smith to guess how much Hero is worth, and then launches into a racist
tirade about how glad he is to be white. Hiatt is brilliant as this despicable
character.
Finally, Penny, Homer and three runaway slaves (Agbabiaka,
Frazier and Michael), along with Hero’s dog, Odyssey (Wallace), await Hero’s
return.
This time it’s Penny’s turn to make a choice. Should
she stay with Hero, who has married while away, or should she join the runaways
and Homer, who loves her, to seek freedom in the North?
Playwright Parks, aided by Liz Diamond’s meticulous
direction, relates this tale compellingly and poetically while showing how
difficult slaves’ lives could be.
She also brings humor into the picture, mainly with
the dog Odyssey, so whimsically played by Wallace. She turns the three runaway slaves
into a Greek chorus that becomes a seamless part of the action.
The main characters all are memorable thanks to
humanizing performances. Completing the cast is the singing, guitar-playing
Martin Luther McCoy as the Musician, who bookends each scene.
Riccardo Hernández designed the stark set with
dramatic lighting by Yi Zhao. The patched costumes are by Sarah Nietfeld with
sound and music direction by Frederick Kennedy. Parks wrote the music.
Choreography is by Randy Duncan.
This co-production with Yale Repertory Theatre is a
brilliant, lyrical drama that’s a must-see.
Running about three hours with one intermission,
“Father Comes Home From the Wars, Parts I, II, III” will continue through May
20 at the Geary Theater. For tickets and information, call (415) 749-2228 or
visit www.act-sf.org.
