Playwright: Jackie Taylor. At: Black Ensemble Theater, 4450 N. Clark St. Tickets: $55-$65. Runs through: Sept. 4
Matinee audiences frequently are slower to warm up than evening crowds, daylight hours tending to discourage suspension of disbelief. At the remount of this, Black Ensemble's most successful show—its second since premiering in 2000—almost a whole 15 minutes went by before spontaneous applause burst forth from playgoers unable to contain their enthusiasm or anticipation.
Don't come expecting the same biomusical that opened sixteen years ago to run continuously for nearly two years, however—the text recounting the rise and fall of iconic pop singer Jackie Wilson has been trimmed in the intervening decade-and-a-half to track with tidy efficiency the events of its subject's volatile life, while allowing plenty of room for the musical spectacle that constitutes this 40-year-old theater company's stock-in-trade.
The score still encompasses Wilson's signature hits—the breakthrough "Reet Petite," the socially conscious "No Pity in the Naked City," the seductive "Doggin' Me Around" and tour de force "Lonely Teardrops"—presented mainly as straightforward play-within-play performance, but occasionally integrated into the storyline, too ( as when Wilson placates his angry wife with a heartfelt rendition of "To Be Loved" ). Chronological markers are provided by other popular recording groups, like Frankie Lymon chirping "Goody Goody" and the Crystals harmonizing on "Da Doo Run Run," while a pair of original songs composed by author Jackie Taylor for Wilson's steadfast mother engender the necessary sympathy for the man whose prodigious talents were matched by his appetites.
This selection in the BET repertoire needs more than an instructive story and infectious melodies to satisfy playgoers recalling the showmanship that propelled Chester Gregory II to Broadway stardom. Though a bit on the beefy side ( as was Wilson himself, who fancied a boxing career before turning to singing as his escape from poverty ), Kelvin Roston Jr. has put in his time at the gym to render himself capable of replicating his persona's body language down to the last serial split and segmented back-bend. Nor has Rosten neglected his vocal exercises, negotiating intricate gospel-cadenzas and multiple-octave falsetto jumps to set your blood to tingling, all for more than two hours with never a hint of laryngeal fatigue.
Be thankful for the stalwart ensemble of seasoned company players, Rueben Echoles' precision-drill dance choreography and Robert Reddrick's likewise high-stamina stage band. An actor tasked with portraying the artist who taught Elvis, Michael and Prince why he was called "Mister Excitement" needs a rest break sometime.
