August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean just wrapped up at Chicago’s Goodman theater and counts among the most impressive examples of theater excellence seen in years. Under the direction of Chuck Smith with Mac Gay Anderson-Cooper serving as associate director, Wilson spins a fascinating tale of inconceivable strength and vision. Carrying strong whiffs of the supernatural and peopled by characters so full they defy comprehension; Gem of the Ocean is the kind of masterpiece that gives from beginning to end.
With a galley kitchen to the right, stairs leading to a second landing, doors opening to other rooms, and a comfortable sitting area on the left, the set was dense with possibilities. Changing very little during the three-hour performance, its layers proved highly flexible, allowing the story to shift and move with smooth dexterity. Even with its long run time, the play sped forward like a dream that becomes more captivating with every shift in direction and focus.
From the first words Aunt Ester’s speaks, you’re struck as much by the clarity and assurance of the production itself as you are with her presence and voice. Played by Lisa Gaye Dixon, Aunt Ester carries in her something of the unknown; a mysterious power that lies just below her surface.
A man is desperate to see her. He’s tells her people say she can help him. When told to come back on Tuesday, he leaves only to wait across the street in tense agitated vigil. Finally gaining his audience, he explains that he heard she could help him heal a terrible anguish. He wants her to show him how he can “wash his soul”.
Gem of the Ocean premiered in 2003 and was the first of Wilson’s ten-play century chronicles. Calling himself a “race” man, the playwright wanted to highlight the lives of Black Americans in the United States and pay homage to the cost existence in this country extracts from them. Portraying the resilience and courage it takes to persevere and succeed while under relentless challenge was another of his goals. Citizen Barlow (Wardell Julius Clark), the man beseeching Aunt Ester’s aid, embodies Wilson’s purpose. Wilson uses Citizen’s plight to draw a picture of how people are forced to carve pathways of survival through heinous obstacles with intelligence, self-reliance and bald courage.
Another man has been accused of stealing a bucket of nails from his job. It’s the early days of the 20th century and measures of value were far different than today. Pursued by the police and cornered, he jumps into the river and refuses to come out; vehemently declaring his innocence. Rather than falsely confessing to save his life, he chooses death and drowns. The true thief was Citizen Barlow. He’s adamant that Aunt Ester to help him ease the weight of guilt on his conscience for allowing another man to die because of something he had done.
With her wisdom, confidence and calm, beings like Aunt Ester draw people to them like beacons. Solly Two Kings (James A. Williams), a man who personifies intrepid virility, is one of them. Battle tested, he’s seen a lot and done more. Despite being unable to read, he possesses much of the deep intuitive knowledge Aunt Ester embodies and couples it with the heart of a gladiator. Don’t be fooled by what he does to make a living, Solly’s the kind of standup guy who superheroes are modeled from. Although Wilson’s mastery of language has always been dizzying with its beauty, it shines with even greater luster whenever Solly speaks. After getting a letter from his sister in Alabama, telling him about the hardship and cruelty she’s enduring at home, he makes the decision to go south and bring her back to Pittsburg.
Set in 1904, Wilson’s epic of suspense and claimed pride takes place just 40 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. The specter of slavery looms at its edges, seeps into the center of the story’s core and eventually drives the direction of the play; while gravely impacting the destiny of each character.
We see how Citizen, like thousands of Black Americans, made his way out of the South and moved north in a desperate gamble to reshape their futures. Few of them grasped they were leaving one cauldron of exploitation for another only slightly less blatant in its tactics to oppress. In Pittsburg, it’s the place where the nails were stolen, the mill, that stokes resentment and draws retaliation for victimizing those it hires.
How these character’s come together to help each other, even under threat, is the reminder that anyone can take a stand. One of the most curious was Black Mary (Sydney Charles). A companion and helper to Aunt Ester, she’s the confidant that read Solly’s sister’s letter to him. Young, but already world wise and seasoned in the shallow conceits of men, she’s not so hardened that she doesn’t recognize and respond to sincerity. Especially the kind of sincerity Citizen discloses after he sees there’s more to her than a prospect for pleasure. It’s the presence of her brother, Caesar (Kelvin Rosten, Jr.), that casts an ominous shadow over any ambitions of self-realization or radical protest. For Caesar, the only law is the written law that bolsters a lop-sided and biased framework. Everyone else, including his sister, responds to principles that consider individual worth and value. It’s the moral law Gem of the Ocean celebrates that shows how the fight for dignity and respect never ends.
Gem of the Ocean
Final performance – February 27th, 2022
Chicago, IL