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Home > Blogs > Arts and Entertainment > Archives > 2008 > October > 06 > Entry
WSU’s ‘Raisin’ not just a history lesson
DAYTON — If you haven’t seen it for a while, or ever, it’s easy to relegate Lorraine Hansberry’s 49-year-old play “A Raisin in the Sun” to the category of dusty old classic on the shelf.
Approached with the fresh vitality Wright State University Theatre is taking in its season-opening production in the Festival Playhouse, “Raisin” is a cornerstone of American theater and a living drama that connects past to present.
As directed by Mary Donahoe, the play is far more than two crucial scenes emphasized at the expense of others. In one, Walter Younger (Bryant Bentley) and Mama (Monica Williams) discover he has lost two-thirds of his father’s life insurance benefits in a scam. In the other, Walter redeems himself to spearhead the family’s move into the known and unkown — an all-white Chicago suburb.
Other moments contain fewer words, but Donahoe has made them just as expressive. One example comes in Act 1 when Mama tells Walter that his wife Ruth (Shawn Storms) may be considering an abortion. She’s right there in the room, but doesn’t speak. The tension and energy that flows between the three of them until Walter leaves to find a drink explains things the text doesn’t.
Especially in Act 1, the staging elevates Ruth’s importance.
Played by Jasmine Batchelor, college student Beneatha’s scenes with rich, shallow suitor George Murchinson (Jeremy Gaston) and Nigerian student Joseph Asagai (Brandon L. Kelly) illustrate two mainstreams of African-American thought, but are also entertaining and amusing.
Stivers School for the Arts student Trey Melvin’s relaxed and happy portrayal of young Travis Younger also helps make this a confident and hopeful “Raisin,” not an angry or doubting one. The pain Walter reveals upon learning the cost of one dream turns out to be more a reason to care about him than to condemn him.
The production is dedicated to Dayton actor and director Sheila Ramsey, who is recovering from a serious illness. It marked the successful debut of acoustical improvements to the WSU theater, where the spoken word sometimes used to vanish in the air.
“A Raisin in the Sun” will continue through Sunday, Oct. 12, in the WSU Creative Arts Center. Tickets are $17-$19. Call (937) 775-2500.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2377 or tmorris@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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