Playwright: Luis Caballero. At: Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. Tickets: 773-327-5252 or www.stage773.com; $35. Runs through: September 14
NightBlue Performing Arts Company now debuts Clemente: The Legend of 21 at Stage 773 for almost a month-long Chicago run. Beginning with record-breaking baseball player Roberto Clemente's funeral, the story is told in flashbacks, starting with the sportsman's childhood memories of playing ball with his older brother.
The young actors who portray the Clemente brothers, along with their parents, are immediate standouts for these early scenes, even with a shaky start by the narrator and adult brother, portrayed by Carlos Miranda. At the performance I attended, at times he sounded like he was reading the text instead of remembering the past, and was a bit difficult to understand sometimes. This will hopefully smooth out over the course of the run.
Half the show is spoken in a Puerto Rican dialect and the multicultural cast mastered the accent fairly well without being too over the top.
The music is completely sung in Spanish and seemed more about tradition than catchiness. The rendition of the song "Soy Clemente" is weak when it needs to be strong to push the storyline forward. The emotionally impactful songs are mainly kept to the second act, with better results.
A few ensemble members have difficulty with dance moves in an early number but got back on track quickly. Here's a tip: Don't look down and let your hips do the shaking.
Ricardo Puente has fun with '70s schtick playing Clemente's manager; however, he needed to add a more highs and lows to the character to keep him from being cartoonish with the gestures and thick accent.
The storyline does tackle some tough subjects such as racism, ethnic stereotypes and gay-bashing during the over two-hour running time. The writing is excellent and shows the temperament of the hot-headed player, particularly in a furniture store scene straight out of the movie Pretty Woman.
Modesto Lacen embraces the title role and through hard work never chokes at bat when he's allowed to get off the bench and play. Co-star Lorraine Velez, who could have been a token love interest, has a nice emotional moment at the close of the first act and maintains a powerful stage presence leading to the tragic finale. Velez's wardrobe is a must-see thanks to costumer Emma Cullimore, who genuinely has a stylish eye for the time period.
Clemente has a strong cast and a story rich in heritage that is important to be told to a younger generation who may not know the tribulations of some of their past ancestors.
During opening night, subtitles projected on the back screen were not ready. With about the half the show being spoken in Spanish, attendees only fluent in English were left in the dark. Subtitles are promised for the rest of the run.
NightBlue made it to second base by press night; however, after a few more summer practices the troupe could possibly hit a home run.
