Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine

C

As the first installment of Lynn Nottage’s residency, Signature Theatre has revived this work from 2004. Theatergoers who know her only from serious plays such as Pulitzer prizewinners Ruined or Sweat may be surprised to see something in a lighter mode. Undine Barnes Calles (Cherise Boothe; Milk Like Sugar) is the invented persona of Sharona Watkins, who grew up in the Brooklyn projects, won a scholarship to Dartmouth, broke off all contact with her family who, she said, had died tragically in a fire, and for 14 years has run a successful PR firm catering to nouveau riche African-Americans. Two years ago she married Hervé (Ian Lassiter; Junk), a sexy Argentinian. When we meet her, she is yelling at her assistant Stephie (Mayaa Boateng; Fairview) for being unable to find a celebrity to attend the Fallopian Blockage benefit she is planning. Imperious in her gold lamé outfit at her teak desk, Undine is clearly ripe for a comeuppance. In short order, her husband absconds with all her money, she becomes the subject of an FBI investigation, she finds out she is pregnant, she is forced to move back home to the family she rejected and she ends up in jail after being mistaken for a drug addict. We next see her in a drug rehab group session where a college professor (Dashiell Eaves; A Time To Kill) is waxing rhapsodic over the pleasures of cocaine. Guy (Lassiter again) is a security guard in the group who takes a shine to her. We see their first date at a BBQ restaurant. A scene of her frustrating visit to a social services office is a bit heavy-handed. Undine’s attempts to become a better human being are not completely convincing and the second act flounders a bit. Truth is Undine, with her droll asides, is much more entertaining company than Sharona. Ms. Boothe is excellent and is supported by a strong ensemble of seven (Heather Alicia Simms; Fairview; Nikiya Mathis, Skeleton Crew; J. Bernard Calloway, Memphis; Marcus Callender, plus the three actors already mentioned) who play multiple roles. Some of the costumes by Montana Levi Blanco (In the Blood, Fairview) and wigs by Cookie Jordan (Once on This Island) are delightfully outlandish. Adam Rigg’s (The House That Will Not Stand) set converts effortlessly to a variety of locales. Director Lileana Blain-Cruz (Red Speedo, War) keeps things moving. It is sporadically entertaining but the satire misses as often as it hits. Running time: one hour 55 minutes including intermission. 

Skeleton Crew ***

Dominique Morisseau has, on a smaller scale, done for Detroit what August Wilson did for Pittsburgh — chronicled the lives of some of its African-American residents over the decades. The final play in her Detroit trilogy, now at Atlantic Stage 2, is a workplace drama set in the break room of a failing auto parts plant in 2008 just as the Great Recession hits. An opening radio bulletin raises the question of how the city has fared in the 40 years since the bloody riots of 1968. We meet three workers — the crusty lesbian Faye (Lynda Gravatt), the union rep who is approaching the 30-year mark at work; Dez (Jason Dirden), a hotheaded young man with authority issues who is putting in as much overtime as possible to be able to leave and start his own garage; Shanita (Nikiya Mathis), a very pregnant second-generation worker who takes pride in her work. Their foreman Reggie (Wendell B. Franklin) got his job with Faye’s help and rose through the ranks to low-level management. Faye is secretly facing serious difficulties, some of her own making. Dez has a crush on Shakita, who has troubling dreams. We learn that Reggie’s late mother was the love of Faye’s life. Reggie is torn by divided loyalties. Management has cut back relentlessly. Supplies are disappearing in night-time thefts. The threat of closure hangs over everyone. The situations are involving and the dialogue is lively. Morisseau’s characters, brought to life by a superb cast, are easy to care about. At its best moments, it recalls August Wilson’s work. The play is greatly assisted by a first-rate production directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Michael Carnahan’s set creates a believable factory break room down to the smallest detail. Paul Tazewell’s costumes are excellent — Faye’s sequined Obama jacket speaks volumes. Rui Rita’s lighting design sets the right mood. The sound design by Robert Kaplowitz is supplemented by original songs by Jimmy “J.Keys” Keys. The breaks between scenes are marked by dance sequences choreographed and performed by Adesola Osakalumi that capture the repetitive, robotic nature of the work. Some of these interludes are punctuated by uncredited projections of the factory floor, the final one showing robots at work. I hope a brave producer mounts Morisseau’s complete trilogy soon. Running time: one hour 50 minutes including intermission.