Juicy is a queer, Southern college kid, already grappling with some serious questions of identity, when the ghost of his father shows up in their backyard, demanding that Juicy avenge his murder. But here’s the rub! Revenge doesn’t come easy to Juicy, a sensitive and self-aware young Black man in search of his own happiness and liberation. From an uproarious family cookout emerges a compelling examination of love and loss, pain and joy. The deliciously funny, Pulitzer Prize-winning play from James Ijames and director Saheem Ali reinvents Shakespeare’s masterpiece.
What remains blissfully in place is the same delightful cast and director Saheem Ali on hand to spread positive vibes and laughter in great abundance. But it is what has been gained that marks this as a most welcome addition to the Broadway season. For even though a demolition of the fourth wall is built into the script, with characters periodically acknowledging our prying eyes, there is now a lovely looseness to that relationship, giving the production a surprising sense of improv and intimacy in a venue that might well have overwhelmed things by distancing us from the action. You can't help but feel welcome, drawn in, and caught up in the story.
For a while there’s some satisfaction in experiencing the ways Ijames inventively reconceives Shakespearean plot points and characters. And, on the design front, it’s clever to replace the usual Danish fog with smoke from a BBQ pit on Maruti Evans’ set. Yet you start to get the sense that more effort was spent on meticulously setting up the pins than finally knocking them down. The ending is mush. Still, the cast’s energy is warm and enveloping throughout. Spears’ Juicy, with his sideways glances and Charlie Brown sincerity, is more lovable than any melancholy Hamlet you’ll ever see. Jones doesn’t come across evil enough to kill anybody, but he’s a font of mischievous energy.
Digital Rush
Price: $39
Where: On the Today Tix app.
When: Released on a first-come, first-served basis every performance day at 9 AM.
Limit: Two per customer
Information: Subject to availability.
2022 | Off-Broadway |
Public Theater Off-Broadway Premiere Production Off-Broadway |
2023 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Play | James Ijames |
2023 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design of a Play | Mikaal Sulaiman |
2023 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Play | Fat Ham |
2023 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | John Gassner Award for New American Play | James Ijames |
2023 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Play | Dominique Fawn Hill |
2023 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Play | Saheem Ali |
2023 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Play | Bradley King |
2023 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play | Nikki Crawford |
2023 | Tony Awards | Best Play | Fat Ham |
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