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I was surprised to learn that JC Lee (Luce), the author of this new play in previews at MCC Theater, is a man. I erroneously assumed that a play about the battle between two feminists of differing generation and race must have been written by a woman. Perhaps it needed a woman to more clearly articulate what is at stake in their struggle. In any case, it came across to me as a muddled look at important issues. From moment to moment, it is hard to tell whether Theresa (the always wonderful Jayne Houdyshell; A Doll's House Part 2, The Humans), an established author on women’s issues, is really interested in defending truth in academia or just fighting to keep rising star Msemaji (the superb Pascale Armand; Eclipsed) from taking over her spotlight. Although Theresa loathes social media where everyone, no matter how stupid, has equal voice, when she discovers unsubstantiated evidence online that Msemaji may have misrepresented her biographical details, she is tempted to weaponize the information. The arguments about gender and race put forth by Theresa and Msemaji seemed circular and repetitive. There are two supporting characters — Kelly (Molly Camp; The Heiress, Close Up Space), moderator of their debate at an academic conference, and David (Richard Masur; Democracy, Olive and the Bitter Herbs), Theresa’s literary agent. The role of Kelly is satirized too broadly and David’s character seemed mainly there as a plot contrivance. The lack of a sympathetic character was an obstacle for me. The scenic design by Clint Ramos (Once on This Island, The Village Bike), with its revolving set and sliding panels and the projection design by Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew were perfectly executed. The set for the hotel room has an LED cityscape outside the window that was so eye-catching that I became more interested in watching it transform than in paying attention to the actors. The costumes by Jacob A. Climer (Kid Victory) were spot-on. Director Liesl Tommy (Eclipsed) did her best with a shaky script. I wish that the script were up to the high level of the production. To me, this is one more case where a play was rushed into production before it was ready. Running time: one hour 45 minutes; no intermission.

Fetch Clay, Make Man ***

(Please click on the title to see the complete review.)
Intrigued by a photograph he ran across 8 years ago showing Stepin Fetchit next to Muhammad Ali at the press conference preceding Ali's 1965 rematch with Sonny Liston, playwright Will Power began to research what might have brought such an unlikely pair together. In this ambitious comic drama, now in a first-rate production at New York Theatre Workshop, Power imagines the story behind the picture. Without giving too much away, let me just say that both men, Fetchit (K. Todd Freeman), the actor reviled for making a career out of playing a submissive Negro and Ali (Ray Fisher), the boxer reviled for being a braggart and a Black Muslim, think they have something to gain from their time together. Brother Rashid (John Earl Jelks), Ali's tightly-wound bodyguard, is determined to prevent anything from tarnishing Ali as the poster boy for the Nation of Islam. The resistance of Ali's beautiful wife Sonji (Nikki M. James) to following the harsh strictures on Muslim women is such a threat. Another imminent threat is the possibility that supporters of the recently assassinated Malcolm X might target Ali. The scenes that take place the week before the fight are intertwined with flashbacks to moments in Fetchit's Hollywood years and his relations with William Fox (Richard Masur), head of Fox Films. This  does not always work to the play's advantage. Nevertheless, I am not going to quibble about a play that has so much energy, such a fine cast and an absolutely superb production. Ricardo Hernandez's elegantly simple set, Paul Tazewell's costumes, Howell Binkley's lighting, Peter Nigrini's projections, and Des McAnuff's smooth direction are all exemplary. Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes including intermission. NOTE: I strongly urge to to take a look at NYTW's online resource "The Brief" [briefnytw.tumblr.com] for valuable background information before you see the play.