Grandma’s Jukebox, playing now at Black Ensemble Theatre (BET), deserves a lot of love for the way it prizes a shero we never meet. One of those rare forces whoradiate purpose, Grandma Betty has just passed away. We meet her family gathered in the living room of her home following her services as they come to grips with the scale of their loss.
Like many contemporary families, this one is slightly unorthodox. Made up of Grandma and her four grandchildren, all adults, the initial impression is that there’s a genuine closeness connecting them. Some may carry a genetic bond with Grandma and some may not. Those details were probably left intentionally unclear. Betty was the kind of woman who saw need and did something about it. Her compassion was not limited by the boundaries of blood. Writer and director Michelle Renee Bester did a wonderful job conveying the exceptionalism of this matriarch’s moral integrity and pragmatic foresight. Everything we learn about Grandma is in the way others talk about her. That includes Richard (J. Michael Wright), who crossed Grandma’s path at a vulnerable stage in the formative years of his life. Through her encouragement and mentorship, he became a lawyer. Although white, he has the same regard and respect for Betty as her Black grandchildren. He also has the task of outlining the provisions of her will to the other four. This set-up proves ideal for establishing the personalities and aspirations of each grandchild. It’s also crucial in understanding the complex dynamics of the family.
Like all BET shows, music is an essential component of the performance. Songs branch out of dialogue as naturally as summer follows spring. Grandma’s Jukebox is almost embarrassingly blessed with a full house of gifted singers whose talent enhance and deepen the core of the story.
Feisty, with a beautiful clarion voice, Jessica (Jessica Seals) has a hard shell that’s not doing a very good job hiding fissures in her marriage. Chris (Vincent Jordan) wants to use the mistakes he’s made in his life to help others find and unlock better alternatives for theirs. His attempt to keep his goals secret initially makes Mikey (Blake Reasoner) think Chris might be backsliding and falling into old habits. Both Jordan and Reasoner bring a warmth and brightness to their roles that energizes the production. Their vocal duets and synchronized dance routines are filled with a naturalness and mutual regard that radiate positive familial kinship. Aeriel Williams as Parker is more of a mystery. The depth of her grief for her grandmother is essentially the only thing we’re shown about her, except when sings and reveals yet another large, crystalline vocal phenomenon.
Curiously, Grandma has tied an unusual rider to her will. The grandkids must agree to three sessions of family mediation before they receive the bulk of their inheritance. Preliminary allocations have already been dispersed. During those distributions, Parker had received the jukebox sitting in the back of the living room. As far as anyone can remember or knows, it never worked and the gift is seen simply as a sentimental remembrance. Its special powers would emerge later.
Intended to coax uncomfortable truths to the surface and enable growth, mediation often entails pain. And as everyone knows, no one can zero in on sensitive stress points like family. When Jessica calls Mikey “Michael”, she knows she’s placing a hot branding iron on a raw nerve. Michael is the name of Mikey’s shockingly abusive father. The father Grandma rescued him from when he was eight. It’s clear that Mikey’s appreciation for that intervention and admiration for his rescuer has only grown over the years. Retaliating against Jessica’s assault, he chastises her for allowing herself to be dominated by an overbearing husband who doesn’t respect her. It’s the kind of family drama that plays out in millions of households, in some form, all over the world. Grandma’s Jukebox shows how cleansing the release of corseted grievances and emotions can be.
Centered and grounded, Chris exudes a confidence that’s not all together what it appears to be. Engaging in a little “faking it until I make it”, his valiant efforts to move his dream from concept to reality are laudatory. Knocked down by disappointment, it’s a struggle to rebound and push forward. He uses the encouragement he gets from Mikey as fuel and plays it forward by sharing it with the inscrutable Parker. Loss is the mountain that has left her so transfixed with grief that only celestial intercession can spur her to re-engage with living. How that’s done is clever and infinitely charming. Ultimately. it also enables the grandchildren to reconnect and support one another in ways they know, appreciate and enjoy.
Classically old school, the music featured in this effort reflects the sounds of Grandma’s youth. From Michael Jackson’s Beat It and I’ll Be There, to Whitney Houston’s I’m Your Baby Tonight and Before I Let You Go, originally performed by Frankie Beverly and Maze, the stage rocked with the soulful sounds of a groove obsessed generation. Set back on their platform high above the stage, the theater’s “house” band led by guitarist Oscar Brown, Jr. and featuring Adam Sherrod (keys), Mark Miller (bass) and Myron Cherry (drums), provided gorgeous acoustic background for Grandma Jukebox’s quintet of stellar singers.
The kind of story that will make you take stock and smile, Grandma’s Jukebox revels in the complex and potentially restorative bonds of family.
Grandma’s Jukebox
Through June 26, 2022
Black Ensemble Theatre
4450 N. Clark Street
Chicago, IL 60640
Tickets: 773-769-4451 / Black Ensemble Theater Box Office or