THE 1041C Theater Reviews

Free Man of Color are one of those few artistic creations that grasp you intention from the beginning to the end.  When i sat down in my seat i expected a serious play because the set and lighting prior to the performance set an eerie feeling.  But when the play started I could tell that this would be a fun and entertaining play.  The entrance of the main character Jacques Cornet and Cupidon Murmur really signified what the play would really be about.  Both of the actors, Jeffrey Wright and Mos Def respectively, did a great job of making the audience laugh and in a sense prepare them for the play.  The costume designs for Jacques Cornet were flashy and beautiful and it also portrayed what kind of a character Jacques Cornet is.  It signified his boasting personality and his value on materialism.  There were also many other talented actors in the play that I had no idea would be in the production.  Joseph Marcell, known as the butler from Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Paul Dano, from the critically acclaimed movie There Will Be Blood, Mos Def, a commercially successful hip hop artist and many more.  Many of these actors were highly qualified in their fields and were experienced actors who really brought the show to life.  The play itself was ingeniously put together.  Side by side comparisons were done at the same time, a character might freeze and other characters around him/her unfreeze and start their own scene.  This gave a chance for the audience to make connections between these characters, who might seem unrelated but in reality had many similarities that wove the whole play together.  Joseph Marcell’s character cleared up any misconception the audience might have of the scene and adequately explained the scene on hand.  The set design created for the play was also beautiful.  The most vivid scene i remembered was when Jacques Cornet was running through the New Orleans swamp.   A series of distorted fabrics and neon colored background gave the same ominous feeling of the swamp, it brought the play alive.  Throughout the show there were many great laughs but the depravity of the climax really grasped the audiences attention.  Throughout the play, the main character created this happy mood by telling jokes, his relationships with woman, and how he treated his friends and family.  This all comes crashing down in the end, with the destruction of Jacques Cornet brought by America.  The end was a climactic moment that made the audience think about American politics and history.  It certainly made me want to learn more about the past and culture of New Orleans and America itself.  It made me think, a task that many play’s don’t accomplish.

The Lincoln Center’s production of John Guare’s A Free Man of Color is marked with colorful sets, costumes, and dialogue.

A tale of one man’s triumph and plight in nineteenth century New Orleans, A Free Man of Color provides viewers with an insight into the life of Jacques Cornet, a half-black man who has purchased his own freedom.

While it seems Guare intended the play to be a tragicomedy, it isn’t able to successfully strike the balance, and turns out to be more of a melodrama. With the exception of the last act, in which Cornel suffers a debilitating end at the hands of the American government, the play has an extremely light-hearted tone that does not mesh well with its conclusion. The jokes are so over-the-top that it is surprising that Guare would chose to approach such a serious issue in this light-hearted a manor. If he had intended on keeping it comedic from beginning to end, that would have been one thing, but the sharp turn that the play takes in its final moments is as sudden and unsettling as being forced on a death-drop rollercoaster when all you’ve ever known is the merry-go-round.

That said, the set design is brilliant and perhaps the best element of the production. The wide range of sets employed is particularly notable, from well-endowed Cornel’s manor, with a very colorful array of nineteenth century furniture, to the empty expanse of the Great White North. The props used are equally elaborate, from the grand roll-out maps to the portrait frames from which many actors make their entrance.

The costumes are equally well put together, with many of them leaving little to the imagination.

The stage direction was superb as well; the actors are able to maneuver around and change the complicated sets with conviction and ease.

While none of the actors deliver Tony-Award winning performances (though that might be near impossible given the material), the acting is certainly not lacking. It was good to see the familiar faces of Joseph Marcell and Mos Def, who were excellent in their respective roles. Lead Jeffrey Wright as Jacques Cornel is equally exceptional. Particularly impressive is Paul Dano, whose role as Meriwether Lewis, President Jefferson’s aid, gains increasing significance as the plot unfolds.

Thus, while the historical accuracy is lacking in places, along with a less-than sturdy plot, if for nothing else, A Free Man of Color is worth attending for its high production value.

Twas a sweet deal indeed to go see a show at Lincoln Center without paying. Also, I got to wear a white suit jacket and it was fly as hell. But I’m actually going to talk about the play. To be honest, I was very confused at the beginning of this play, because, for whatever reason, I was under the impression that it was going to be an opera. It took me about 5 minutes to realize that it was not. I’m quick, I know.

The style of acting one has to commit to on stage is very different from the style that one would go with on film. Sometimes, the stage-style bothers me, because it often times involves over-acting. This was not the case at all. From the very get-go, I was immediately sucked into the play. The two men who started the play were both hilarious from the start. I thought one of them looked like Mos Def, and I spent the entirety of the first act wondering to myself, “Damn, is that Mos Def? I think that might be Mos Def..” (Spoiler alert, it was Mos Def. Yahoo!!) The chemistry between the two men was always funny (until the end, of course, but I’ll get to that later) and I found myself liking each and every character. This doesn’t mean that all the characters were necessarily nice, it just meant that the characters were well played. For example, Thomas Jefferson was kind of rude and screwed over Toussaint L’Ouverture, but I liked the character. He was an essential part of the play. Everyone played their roles.

Overall, I thought the direction was decent. My only problem was how the scenes changed. Action could be happening on one side of the stage, and then the setting would change to another country, and the lights would go off on one side of the stage, and then go on on the opposite side. And Napoleon would be in a tub or something. Perhaps that has more to do with the size of the stage, though. Other than that, everything was fine. The blocking and movement of the actors always seemed natural and appropriate. The pacing of each scene was smooth (never too fast, never too slow).

The theatre itself was rather nice. There were seats surrounding the stage (I’ve performed in a theatre like this before, the Westchester Broadway Theatre. It’s great to be able to play to all sides of the stage). The audience was alive, and laughed at all the jokes, which is always good. It’s almost as bad to be in an audience that doesn’t “get it” as it is to be performing to one. Like I said earlier, the stage seemed a little bit small, until the “white spaces” opened up. I’m not sure how much larger the stage actually got, but once it happened, everything looked so much more open. So mission accomplished by the set design team. The set pieces were all fitting for the time period, as well as the costumes. They all matched each other (although not necessarily in color, more in design). The lead man always had the most vibrant colors to wear, which brought nice attention to him, and really made him stand out.

(By the way, I spent all of Act II geeking out about Mos Def.)

My only comments on the lighting are one two things that happened at the end. To be honest, I did not take note at all of the lighting throughout most of the play. But when the white spaces opened, everything became so much brighter, and I thought it was brilliant. It really helped me as an audience member identify with the fear and wonder that Lewis felt when he went to explore the newly purchased Louisiana territory. My other lighting note involved the big American flag. The whole stage was bright again, but this time with red, white and blue. I felt the impending doom that Jacques Cornet was about to understand (because I knew what actually happened in history, unlike the character).

The humor and wit of the play carried nicely throughout, until the very end, when things took a serious turn. I had no idea that it was going to end in such a way. The pivotal in which Mos Def turns in his master was absolutely heartbreaking for me. You could really see the relationship that they once had in one scene, and then the next, it was gone. When Cornet vanished for a period of time, he had no idea that his world would be turned entirely upside down.

Just before the play ended, I thought to myself, “Wow, I really liked this play.” But by the end, I thought to myself, “Wow, I really loved this play.”

Is that the butler from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air? Wait, is that Mos Def?!

Seeing Joseph Marcell and Mos Def was definitely a shocker for me, I did not expect to be watching any actors I would actually know. Majority of the actors did a very good job in keeping me from realizing that it was all just a play. The only times where I was reminded that I was merely watching a play and not reality unfolding was when a few of the whores started to overreact. The play ran through smoothly with actors making minor mistakes.

The use of props and scenery definitely helped to convince me of the play’s realism. When they were at Jacques Cornet’s house there were lavish decorations, when they were at sea there were ship masts and when they were traveling through the unknown territory there was barren land and a rock. I also adored the costumes they used throughout the production. Each person’s outfit matched their character: Jacques Cornet was luxurious and showy while Dr. Toubib always looked strictly professional.

One of my biggest problems with this play was that I did get lost a few times. There was so much going on and although they explained everything for the most part there were still scenes where I was a bit fuzzy as to the who, what, where and why. I felt as if some parts were cut too soon and others dragged on for too long. Sometimes scenes switched over so quickly that I lost track of the storyline.

Overall the play was a pleasure to watch and a great experience. I have not watched a live performance (besides Disney performances when I’m in Orlando) in quite some time. Watching A Free Man of Color brought back memories and re-sparked my interest in watching theatrical productions.

I’d been to Lincoln Center before, the place brought back many memories. The 1 train to 66st lincoln center was my journey every day of high school. I had seen a martial arts performance, two operas, the nutcracker, and had graduated at Alice Tully Hall. And yet it did feel significantly different from the times before. I had never been to that specific venue, and I had yet to see a non-musical play there.
I was unsettled by the rudeness of the usher, getting very uptight that we were not sitting in the proper seats, even if we were obviously a group. The prerecorded music took away from the authenticity of the production, and was somewhat disappointed. As the show began, however, I was quickly drawn into it.
Although I did find myself fading from time to time, and just assuming the general actions rather than listening to constant mini-monologues of the main characters, it was a relatively entertaining and interesting story. Cornet’s voice was vaguely irritating. His accent was quite strange.
Mos Def was a surprisingly great actor. He provided an elegance as well as humble strength to both the characters of Murmur, the slave, and Toussaint Louverture. I was impressed.
I thought the parts with Napoleon, Jefferson, and Livingston were a bit contrived. It was slightly humourous but more so corny.

By far the best part of the play were the costumes. The prostitutes and Cornet’s playboy mentality was almost reminiscent of Les Liasons Dangereuses. Also, one great part that made my heart quicken was the “great white space” that Lewis ventures into. Whoever created that set design I am incredibly admirable of. It not only created a sense of infinity but also added a sort of deafening quiet.

As the play ended and people began to applaud, I would have to say I was disheartened. I did not feel the sort of bursting applause that I sometimes get after amazing performances. I’m not sure if it was because the conclusion of the story lacked real impact (for I already knew what was going to happen), or if it was the overall play itself. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the outing as a whole, was entertained and would consider a positive outcome.

Pretty lighting. Water fountains. People dressed up. New York City. I was in heaven. It was a beautiful scene, outside of Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont theatre. I was exhausted and breathless from running around in 4-inch heels, but I was driven by a giddy sense of pleasure, and adventure, that I felt about going to see a well-reviewed play with my friends. The play will last until 11 pm, but it will be a great experience. I will enjoy it and I will create lasting memories, about an excellent play, and an epic night of fun with well-dressed friends.

That’s not exactly what happened, but what did was all right. I expected something spectacular, something I was sure to enjoy and remember, and that was what we got, at least at first. The play began on a high note. Two of the three actors I thought were excellent, Jeffrey Wright as Jacques Cornet, and Mos as Cupidon Murmur, came on stage and set the bar for the performance. They were amazing. When the scene changed, the production reached what I believed was its height- the moment the props came out of nowhere. I was surprised and amazed. I was very impressed by the sets, my favorite part of the production. I did not expect such a strategic use of props. It was not difficult to distinguish between scenes. Transitions were executed smoothly and easily. With the simple addition of a few plants and background music, the stage was transformed into a tropical island. Portrait frames dropped from the ceiling and created a grand backdrop for the “house” scenes. The floor moved, couches and beds appeared out of nowhere and a platform moved towards the audience- it was impossible to overlook the creative, innovative use of machinery.

Unfortunately, the excitement did not last. Once the whores came out and performed their dialogues, it became almost painful to watch. While the directors and stage managers executed their jobs flawlessly, the actors just did not meet my expectations. As they said their lines, and moved around the stage, I was annoyingly aware that they were acting. It was predictable- I felt them count down their pauses, I knew when they were going to raise their voices. They were overacting. Aside from Cornet and Murmur, the only other standout was Wendy Rich Stetson as Lady Harcourt. Her “bah-doom” was memorable. She was genuinely funny.

Despite the fact that the play ran from 8-11 pm, it held my attention quite well. Only the middle hour or so disappointed. The plot became difficult to follow. It was, in my opinion, too long and became increasingly uninteresting as it went on. The lackluster acting did not help. It was quite upsetting to realize that my expectations were not met, but maybe that was a fault not entirely theirs. I realize that some other members of the audience really enjoyed the play, but I just was not one of them and that, I truly regret.

Despite being crammed in a tiny seat and nauseatingly dizzy throughout the play, I have to say I enjoyed it. One thing I absolutely adored was the set design! It was intricate and technical and so aesthetically pleasing. I’m a huge fan of visuals and this play provided me with all the elements of set design and costume that I look for in a play. The sparkly buckles in their shoes, the royal purples and golds and maroons in Jacques Cornet’s exquisite wardrobe, the plush pillows and chaise lounges, the set transforming from a dining room into a bathroom in a matter of seconds. That was probably my favorite part of the play. I was constantly trying to get in the mindset of the set designers and stylists and wondering what their thought process was when they picked out all of these little details that made the play the beautiful vision that it was.

The lighting was also amazing. You could tell that a lot of thought went into the different lighting and the moods it created onstage. One scene I particularly remember was towards the end when a massive American flag made up the background and the lighting was cast so that the shadows of the characters onstage were shown on the flag. The shadows gave drama and height to a particularly dramatic moment in the play.

These various aesthetic elements are what really set apart this play from Medea for me, which lacked any décor or lighting or costumes.

The acting is another element deserving of praise. The cast was a mix of diverse performers with amazing credentials in film, television, and plays. It was interesting and pleasantly surprising to see Mos Def play the role of Murmur. I actually found out that him and Jeffrey Wright, who plays the infamous Jacques Cornet, were both in the movie Cadillac Records, playing Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters, respectively. These two characters are very different from the ones they portrayed in the play and I think it just shows the variety and power of their talent.

Despite being the two main characters, they were not the only talented people in the play. I think that all the supporting characters, from the wives to the prostitutes to all the foreign presidents and ministers, really made the play what it was.

And what exactly was it? It was funny- with all the sexual innuendos and jokes, it put the audience in a lighthearted mood without being too crude. It was well decorated, but I’ve already exalted that aspect of it. It told a historical story through a fresh and interesting perspective, which is perhaps why it was so effective as a play and didn’t fall flat or become just a boring history lecture.

My only criticism is that it was a little bit lengthy, but if I went to see it on a day when I didn’t have school and had time to eat lunch that day, perhaps I wouldn’t mind that aspect of it because all the good elements overpowered the bad.

Overall, the play managed to combine an important message about race, give a historical lesson, provide admirable visuals, and make us laugh. That’s pretty successful in my eyes.

While dashing at a fashionably late hour through the elegant Lincoln Centre, I felt both excited and nervous to be part of the audience of A Free Man of Color. A Broadway show was intimidating for me because this was the first time in four or five years that I was going to be engaged in a theatrical performance such as this. The entire professional mood that I was put in was quite different than the mood felt at Baruch’s BPAC. The diverse audience, which included two of Ghana’s citizens dressed in ‘cultural dresses’ (who were interviewed by me during the sole intermission), seemed to be filled with cultural and intellectual people from all over. The impression I received of the Vivian Beumont Theatre continued when I was escorted to my tiny seat with a flashlight. As you can tell, even before the performance began I was electrically charged into a mood ready to explore the world of New Orleans and Jacques Cornet.

The adjective “interesting” does not capture the positive energy felt through the audience. The length of the play was disregarded through the laughter, the famous actors and actresses, and the satire of historical figures. The props, which included gates, lamps, windows, doors, rocks, flags, and much more added on to the play that made you feel like you are an 1803 New Orleans settler about to start a conversation with one of Cornet’s business partners. The amazing ability of the director to transition between scenes using a select amount of tunes helped your brain with a nice number of seconds to adjust. I enjoyed the costumes of the people working with moving the furniture and other props used during the transitions, because the director even focused on these people to add to the play. With a love for detail, I also enjoyed the lighting used. The different colors in different scenes helped express the tone and feeling of each character. For example, in the scene where the French ships carrying the Yellow Fever were introduced in American waters, the lighting was all dark and scary. The props of the hands reaching for savior represented the evil world outside the fantasy the New Orleans people were experiencing. All these small extras really helped get the audience’s minds rolling to think about the 1800s and the cruelty of the time.

My favorite character was definitely Cornet, who was played by Jefferey Wright. Wright had a remarkable way of using his reputation as a wealthy Don Juan in New Orleans to attract all the wives of his loyal businessmen. Wright also had amazing direction of body language added on to his moves on the women. Wright was a real Don Juan, from the hysterical seductive lines, especially in the scene with the female scientist, to the outrageous costumes and designs; Wright was a 10 out of 10. Another character that I enjoyed viewing was the Murmur, or the famous rapper, Mos Def. It was interesting to see a director’s choice of a rapper to play a slave. I loved the transition Mos Def had to deal with from being a Haitian leader to a slave through specific scenes and his facial expressions during hysterical dialogues with Cornet. The characters made me feel like I made the right choice in spending 3 hours of my Thursday night.

The wacky sexual encounters were disturbing and somewhat “too much” for me but I feel like that is what the American society is all about. Otherwise, the overall extravagant costume, outrageous props, and the comedy and word choice in the script made the hysterical play, A Free Man of Color, a play I would suggest to others who do not mind blunt sexual disturbances.

I’ve been jammed in the back of a tiny Acura TL with three other people sitting next to me and one person lying down on my lap, and I still think that the seats at the Vivian Beaumont theater were the worst seating arrangements I ever had to go through in my 18 years of life. I think the experience is comparable to being in the backseat of a Mexican border smuggling van, being cuffed and squeezed inside a police car, or being locked in an Al-Qaeda solitary confinement prison cell. I won’t say which of the three listed situations I had the misfortune to go through, but I will say that after sitting in those seats I will without a doubt never be able to have children. Obviously there has been a huge increase in the obesity level over the years in New York City because those seats were clearly custom made for Kate Moss, or might have been made from a surplus of foot rests. I just thank all my blessings that I didn’t buy the overpriced popcorn at the concession stand, had I eaten anything while sitting in those cramped seats I wouldn’t have been able to get out of them at the end of the show.

All specially designed hamster seats aside, I enjoyed A Free Man of Color a lot. To start, I think the actor choices for the characters blew the character selection of Medea right out of the water, not to say that Medea was ever actually in the water. Mos Def was most definitely brilliant; it’s good to see that a lyrically powerful rapper can pull off a just as powerful performance as a powerless slave, I personally feel that his cynical acting style contributed the most to the humorous tone of the play. However, his separate portrayal of a Haitian revolutionist and his “betrayal” of Jacques Cornet at the end of the play showed a more serious side of Mos Def’s acting ability. Jacques Cornet was also very well played; his frivolous behavior and scheming player mentality was strongly portrayed by the actor. However, his fashion sense was rather questionable even for the historical time period; his wardrobe would make a gay pride parade look bland.

I also enjoyed the actresses of the play, although I feel that the only role the women played were sexual roles. I have nothing against sexually active women, but I think the role of women could have been expanded further than flings and scientists finding epiphanies while having sex. On the flip side, I found that the especially large breasted women drew attention away from the main action of the play, particularly those of the light skinned Hispanic girl. I blame the presence of her breasts on stage for my inability to recall any names from the play.

The plot of the show was relatively strong, but somewhat ridiculous. It was generally historically accurate, but the actions of the characters were much more contemporary. Of course, I wouldn’t have liked it any other way because I definitely would have dozed off had they been speaking and acting in colonial mannerisms, big breasts included or not.  I did however find Jacques Cornet’s announcement to New Orleans that his penis and testicles were shot off to be hilarious; I felt the same way while sitting in those emasculating seats. Another highlight of the play was when Napoleon got up from the bathtub wearing nothing but an extremely ornate strap-on; I nearly died laughing. The actor who played Napoleon’s character was actually among my favorites of the play; his accent mixed with a snobby, vulgar and desperate attitude helped provide a tasteless side of the play, which I find to be the best sides of plays.

I would give this play an eight out of ten. The two points were taken off for the two things of mine that were taken off while sitting in that cage of a seat, and the eight points came from a variety of positives: big breasts, a multitude of sexually charged jokes, references to people and events that came into being hundreds of years after the timeline of the play and the subliminal messages hidden beneath all the shallow sexual jokes and flirtatious women. One such message was that the phrase “all men are created equal” as stated all throughout American history is as valid as my student Metrocard from high school, and that the double standard used with blacks while dealing with equality is extremely prevalent. I for one agree with this message, and enjoyed the fact that the screenwriter managed to fit something so important into such a seemingly lighthearted theater production.

I really enjoyed the “A Free Man of Color” play. Despite the long three hours, it was definitely not the boring and lackluster play I imagined. Everything there was vibrant and beautiful. Essentially, it was a proscenium seven sided stage with double tiered seats. There was also a proscenium arch. Despite the crowded seating, the atmosphere was very comfortable and amicable.

The first thing I noticed when the play started was the costume Jacques Cornet first wore. His costume was comprised of gold, purple, and bright red textures and clothes. It was surprising because I never realized that people wore such vibrant clothes during that time period. I was also surprised when parts of the floor were moving and changing. For example, when Jacques told his slave Cupidon to get his treasure chest of clothes, a part of the floor descended down and ascended back up with a chest. They did this change throughout the play with different types of props like chairs, ship, tables, and more.

I noticed a lot of common elements used throughout the play. For example, each of the characters took turns talking by standing in front of the audience. In addition to this, light was shown on them to enhance their facial expressions. Plus, I had no problem hearing them talk because their voices were amplified inside the enclosed arena. There was also a narrator that said all the actions that were happening or were about to happen. This is similar to a chorus. One element I enjoyed hearing and watching was the exaggerated noises the characters made.  For example, when Jacques and the girls were almost done with sex, the girls exclaimed really loud moan of ecstasies and there was a firework sound effect. There were also shadows made to emphasize the secrecy among the citizens of New Orleans.

Another thing I really liked about the play was all the sexual innuendos the actors implied. They were really hilarious and the jokes kept me awake throughout the long play. The different types of scenic props were also very exciting for me. I was shocked by how they were able to change the background constantly to fit the next scene. They went from hanging trees to the American flag to cages/doors. I was captivated by how the actors and actresses were able to every part of the stage to convey entirely different places like the living room or the yard of a poor man’s house.

Despite it being vibrant and theatrical, the play also has historical significance. Jacques and the other characters talked about major themes during that time. For example, they talked about slavery, marriage, politics and power, and land. It was interesting how they incirpoated historical context into the play but yet, made it humorous and alluring. Overall, I would definitely recommend this play. It is full of historical knowledge but yet, funny and hilarious.

-Christine