• Blues for an Alabama Sky

10/22/22 (Sat), London National Theatre

Pearl Cleage’s 1990 show, making its UK debut in a production by Lynette Linton, is an entertaining look at Harlem residents during the so-called Harlem Renaissance of the 1930s. Angel, a performer with dreams of glory, has been kicked out of a nightclub for assaulting a two-timing customer. We encounter her being helped home in a drunken state by her gay friend Guy, who has his own dreams of designing costumes in Paris for Josephine Baker. A good Samaritan who helps out turns out to be a visitor from Alabama who falls for her. The Alabama man is of course a narrow-minded rube who denounces abortion and homosexuality (without realizing somehow that the swishy dress designer is gay), his conservative ways leading ultimately to melodrama. The catch here is that the Alabama bigot is black, which is an innovation of sorts. When Angel gets pregnant by him, he wants to get married, as one did in those days. She, though, has other ideas, and her subsequent actions have tragic consequences. The story also involves Angel’s neighbor Della, who has been attending lectures by Margaret Sanger on birth control, and her relation with a doctor friend.

The Alabama in the title suggested the usual white-black confrontation, but the real enemy in this play is the Depression. The concerns of the characters are more personal than societal: money, romance, career, unwanted pregnancy, abortion. It’s a welcome change from most black-oriented shows that I’ve experienced and a superb slice-of-life drama. Though somewhat predictable in the second half, the show is beautifully constructed. I would love to see more shows like this.

The characters are extremely well drawn: the dynamo nightclub performer, the witty (of course) gay designer, the shy friend next door who is becoming involved in the birth control movement, the doctor who loves her. The drama is solid, and the dialogue is light and fun. It’s hard to imagine that these unknowns are on a first-name basis with Langston Hughes and other celebrities of the day, but maybe Harlem was like that back then. The woman’s sudden admission of her abortion was a true shocker, and while I wish the author had been more creative in the subsequent events, it was never less than entertaining.

The cast was wonderful all around, with special kudos to Samira Wiley (Angel), Giles Terera (Guy) and the woman next door. The director kept things interesting by shifting the single set ever so slightly to give varying perspectives. The National Theatre at its very best.