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{PHOTO COURTESY OF PITTSBURGH PUBLIC THEATER}
Montae Russell in Thurgood
and stage presence. The versatile Frey transforms himself — with discreet costume changes — into a supporting cast of friends, villains, men and one woman. More music than dialogue, Breath & Imagination most aptly tells its story with a mix of selected spirituals and Beaty’s original songs, sprinkled with classical pieces. INFO@ PGHC ITY PAP ER.CO M
counsel and fought segregation and Jim Crow laws for 30 years. He argued Brown v. Board of Education at the Supreme Court, served on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, became the U.S. Solicitor General and, in 1967, was appointed to the Supreme Court. And much of that, in fact most everything he did, can be prefaced with “First African American to …”
JUSTICE DONE
THURGOOD
{BY TED HOOVER}
continues through April 7. Pittsburgh Public Theater, 621 Penn Ave., Downtown. $15.75-55. 412-316-1600 or www.ppt.org
TONY KUSHNER opens the second half of
Angels in America with a character named The World’s Oldest Bolshevik ridiculing modern socialists as “pygmy children of a gigantic race.” It’s hard not to think of that watching Thurgood, about the late Thurgood Marshall, at Pittsburgh Public Theater. This one-man show makes the case that Marshall may be the last great Supreme Court Justice; even the few good contemporary ones are smallbore moderates reacting to, rather than leading, the times. And it’s our fault; we pygmy children who, through apathy and myopia, have midwifed a political system in which mavericks like Marshall can never again flourish. But it isn’t playwright George Stevens Jr.’s aim to show how far we’ve fallen from the path. Thurgood is, from start to finish, a Marshall hagiography recounting his life and times. Make that his remarkable life and historic times. Marshall was NAACP chief
Thurgood, truth to tell, isn’t really what you’d call a play. The “plot” is Marshall in his later years giving a speech at his alma mater, Howard University. Stevens has, in fact, just strung together enough anecdotes and generalized facts to fill 90 minutes. It should be dull, but when the anecdotes and facts are as sensational as Marshall’s, the evening is entertaining throughout. Ted Pappas directs Montae Russell in an unabashedly bravura performance. Russell never shies away from any outsized emotion. His ferocity is more than appropriate considering Marshall’s leonine nature, but I think a few moments of quiet, too, could allow both the performance and production to breath. Russell possesses a natural comedic flair, and a little more of that as well wouldn’t go amiss. I’m not sure we pygmy children deserve Marshall, but Thurgood shows how lucky we were to have him.
TED PAPPAS DIRECTS MONTAE RUSSELL IN AN UNABASHEDLY BRAVURA PERFORMANCE.
I N F O @PGH C IT YPAPE R . C O M
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Dirt Band
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Elko Concerts presents Jewel Greatest Hits Tour with special guest Holly Williams Vestry presents Jesus Christ Superstar’s Ted Neeley University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg presents Eleanor: An American Love Story River City Brass’ Big Band and Doo Wop Brass Life Like Touring: Scooby-Doo Live! Musical Mysteries Latshaw Productions presents The Beach Boys Latshaw Productions: Branson’s Ozark Jubilee Latshaw Productions presents Michael W. Smith Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra presents Brilliant Brahms w/Pianist Angela Cheng Stage Right! presents Seussical The Musical Stage Right! presents Seussical The Musical John Noble’s 17th Westmoreland Night of the Stars Elko Concerts presents Tanya Tucker Westmoreland Columbus 500 presents Lights Out A Tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons WCT presents Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Latshaw Productions: Vicki Lawrence & Mama River City Brass’ Beach Blanket Brass WSO’s Pops Concert - Around the World with Disney Sanford-Brown Commencements Laurel Ballet Performing Company: Cinderella Elko presents Queensryche “25th Anniversary Tour of Operation Mindcrime” Elko Concerts presents Buddy Guy Westmoreland Cultural Trust presents Travis Tritt Drusky-Kirschner presents David Byrne-St. Vincent Elko: George Jones “The Grand Farewell Tour” Latshaw: Kenny Vance and The Planotones Latshaw Michael English & Special Guest The Easters Latshaw Productions presents Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone plus The Marcels
Travis Tritt
George Jones-Gran d Farewell Tour
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