Misty Off-Broadway Reviews

Apropos a subversive piece of performance art, the design for Misty is top-tier, particularly Daniel Denton’s video design, which transforms the back walls into arresting color-drenched canvases. And as far as what we think of his show-if we don’t like it, Kene has something to say about that. No spoilers, though. The freestyle is too good to ruin.

What can I say? Misty may not pay off when viewed from one angle but viewed from another – Omar Elerian directing and with contributions from Godwin and Lee as music coordinators and non-stop sound designer Elena Peña – Misty pays off like a bright orange Happy Birthday balloon.

The play is open to interpretation, and there are some unanswered questions. The term 'misty' might refer to the slang word for crack cocaine, or maybe it describes the nebulous, genre-bending plot or the smoggy smoke effects. Perhaps it refers to the misty-eyed Kene, taking a bow to conclude his tour de force performance. There are many ways to describe the show, and it reaches Kene’s objective: It doesn’t tick boxes of what a play about a Black man should look like, or what any play should look like, for that matter. Misty creates a new rubric.

When he dives fully into the plight of displaced Black men, his ideas get squishy and as hard to grasp as a deflating balloon. We never really understand the forces motivating his childhood friend Lucas, whose behavior after a scuffle on a night bus becomes increasingly criminal (and, frankly, indefensible).

Kene ultimately proves to be one of the most charismatic (and, yes, physically buff) performers to grace a New York stage in years. And soon enough, the subject of his strange monologue will be revealed—one many of us can relate to—as will its overall part in this bracing play about artistic expectations and the freedom to tell the story you choose.