Carrying on traditions is the dilemma facing the characters in She Calls Up the Sun, Addae Moon's 2002 drama that is concluding MPAACT's 2007-08 season of revivals. Moon shows how traditions keep you rooted to your ancestors, but can also keep you from progressing in a world of change.
She Calls Up the Sun follows the young African-American couple of guitarist Ishmael ( Loenord House ) and teacher Marie ( Tamberla Perry ) . They both left Atlanta and resettled in her coastal Florida hometown when Marie's mother fell ill from cancer.
Following the mother's funeral, Ishamael is restless to return to Atlanta while Marie drags her feet at leaving. ( Apparently, she is the only woman in town now who can carry on a Gullah tradition of making dolls for the deceased. ) Marie also is blossoming as she incorporates more of her mother's Gullah mannerisms, even if the hometown offers rare economic opportunities and stifles her husband. Plus, Marie also loves the attention from her girlhood friend, Felix ( Austin Talley ) .
_____________
Playwright: Addae Moon
At: MPAACT at Victory Gardens Greenhouse,
2257 N. Lincoln
Phone: 773-871-3000; $19.50-$22.50
Through June 1
_____________
But things get really complicated when Marie's estranged jazz-musician father, Oliver ( Arch Harmon ) , returns to town. Oliver's arrival heightens Marie and Ishmael's arguments and hints that the tradition of abandonment will continue.
While Moon's ending hints of reconciliation, it doesn't entirely say which side he's on. That's a frustrating note to end on, since there is plenty of insightful commentary on African-American traditions faced by the characters.
There is also an inordinate amount of liquor swilled down by the characters—so much so that you question why Moon never brings up the issue of alcoholism.
If Moon's play doesn't entirely satisfy, he does provide some tasty dialogue for MPAACT's acting ensemble under Carla Stillwell's direction. Talley is the main charmer, especially since he exudes the confidence of an attractive man who can easily laugh at life. Also much fun is Daryl Charisse blasé attitude as Claire, one of the town's matriarchs with a sharp seen-it-all stance as she doles out and consoles with advice.
Harmon does very well as Oliver, even though his character feels underwritten and present largely as a symbol to show that many African-American men end up leaving their families. House's anger and frustration as Ishmael is valid, while Perry really gets an acting workout veering from a flirt with Felix to a bitter child finally getting the chance to confront her absent father.
As always, MPAACT's live musical accompaniment is great under the skilled strumming hands of Red Clay and Gullah Magic.
Even if Moon's stance on tradition isn't entirely clear in She Calls Up the Sun, the play does compellingly address issues faced by many African Americans.