THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

Prince's "When Doves Cry" blares at the start of The House That Will Not Stand, Marcus Gardley's latest world-premiere play for Victory Gardens Theatre. Later, a trio of teenage sisters gyrate to the beats of Beyonce while singing about the latest dance craze—the Viennese waltz.

By this point, audiences should be clued in that Gardley and director Chay Yew are playing fast and loose with "historical accuracy" for The House That Will Not Stand. The setting may be 1813 New Orleans, but Gardley and Yew are instead creating a theatrical dialogue between the lives of African-American women back then and those of today in light of the hurtful legacies of slavery, racism and sexism.

Taken on those terms, The House That Will Not Stand offers a rich history lesson on French Creole society that is easily digestible for contemporary audiences. Also tremendously enjoyable is how Gardley fills his play with hilarious shade, and that Yew has found a top-notch ensemble who masterfully finesses all the dialogue.

Yet the play warns of the racial horrors just around the corner. In the decade following the United States' Louisiana Purchase from France, the complex mixed-race stratifications of creole society are crumbling due to the oncoming blunt force of U.S. racism where "one drop of African blood makes you Black."

Caught in the middle of all this is the Albans family, led by the tyrannical and hypocritical matriarch Beatrice ( Lizan Mitchell ). Although Beatrice greatly benefitted from being a placeé ( Creole women with African heritage who elevated their societal standing by entering into common-law marriages with white men ), she is hell-bent that her daughters won't follow her path.

Beatrice's daughters have other ideas as they spar amongst themselves in light of their father's death. The strict Catholic religiosity of Maude Lynn ( Angela Alise ) gets on everyone's nerves. Meanwhile the self-proclaimed prettiest one, Agnès ( Diana Coates ), reveals the intra-racist views that her other sister, Odette ( Aneisa Hicks ), is too dark to ensnare a wealthy white man.

Also suffering from racism of the time is Beatrice's "mad" sister, Marie-Josephine ( Penelope Walker ), whose love for a drummer was cruelly thwarted. And the Albans family's long-time slave Makeda ( Jacqueline Williams ) has her loyalties immediately tested by Beatrice's embittered long-time rival, La Veuve ( Linda Bright Clay ).

Now there are a few quibbles with Gardley's play, which has its share of stereotypical New Orleans hallmarks ( specifically a voodoo possession ). The ending also feels far too rushed as some departures don't get the full dramatic weight they deserve.

But I'm willing to give The House That Will Not Stand a pass. While offering up so many juicy roles for African-American actresses, Gardley creates a vastly entertaining drama that opens a fascinating window to the past while addressing audiences of today.