Interview: Devin A. Cunningham of FAT HAM at San Francisco Playhouse

It’s a rare and wonderful thing when a young actor gets cast in a plum role in a play they feel was written especially for them, and that is the exact situation Devin A. Cunningham finds himself in right now. Cunningham plays the central role of Juicy in Fat Ham, James Ijames’ Pulitzer Prize-winning adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, in the San Francisco Playhouse production directed by Bay Area theater titan Margo Hall. Juicy is Ijames’ Hamlet protagonist reimagined as Black, queer and thicc.

Fat Ham turns the Shakespeare tragedy on its head, transporting the drama to a raucous, modern-day barbecue in the American South where college kid Juicy longs to break his crazy family’s cycle of trauma and violence when his father’s ghost demands Juicy avenge his murder. Bouncing between family feuds, irreverent comedy, poignant soliloquies and a jubilant dance party (this is definitely not your mother’s Hamlet!), the play explores legacy and identity, love and loss, as well as pain and joy.

I caught up with Cunningham by phone last week while he was in the midst of final rehearsals. We talked about why this play speaks to him, his history of working with Margo Hall, his path to finding his way as an actor, and some other roles he’d love to play someday. Not that he’s in any hurry, mind you. He may still be in the early stages of his career, but as he says, “I plan on being in this for the rest of my life.” During the interview, I was struck by how often he used the words “grateful.” The following conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Where are you at right now in the rehearsal process?

We are in the final rehearsals before tech, so we’re super excited to be heading into the space.

Are you an actor who loves rehearsing or more the kind who can’t wait to get to opening night so you can perform for an audience?

Oh, I love rehearsal; it’s honestly the best. You get to play and explore and find so many layers and nuances to the character that you can only find in the rehearsal process. Once you get the audience, that’s the last character, they’re the final piece to the puzzle. The rehearsal process, especially with this cast, has been amazing and the chemistry that we’ve all found is crucial.

How familiar were you with Fat Ham before getting cast in it?

I was familiar with James Ijames, the playwright. I’d read his work before, particularly Youth, and really enjoy that play. Then I heard about Fat Ham, read it and was like “Omigosh! This is an amazing adaptation of Hamlet.” It felt like this story gave room for Black men such as myself to play Hamlet and be seen in a new light.

When you read it did you think “Oh, I would kill to play the part of Juicy”?

Didn’t think I would kill, but did think I would go ahead and handle the bizness to get to where I wanted to be! [laughs] It was definitely one of those things when you read something that moves you, that was like “Oh, this was written for me.” I’m so grateful to even be in this position to where I can play a character such as Juicy, so I’m over the moon. And super glad and grateful to Margo and the casting team for selecting me.  

What’s it been like working with Margo Hall as your director? Had you ever worked with her before?

I worked with Margo years ago at Chabot College where I first started acting. She was one of my first theater instructors and acting coaches, so this is a full-circle moment and it’s been great to work with her again in this capacity. She’s an awesome director, always asking for perspective, always asking for nuance. Truly you learn a lot from someone with her experience, and you just hope that you take every moment as a lesson and just play - I’m grateful that she likes to play.

What’s a specific lesson you’ve learned from working with her on Fat Ham?

The biggest thing for me is she has reiterated to just be present, be in the moment and say the lines. You know, sometimes actors, because we can be smart and understand the person on the page, can be heady. She’s constantly reminding us to just be present, say the line and trust that the words are enough. That has been a phenomenal lesson that I’m taking away from this process.

In some ways, Juicy is the quiet center of the play. The other characters are pretty extra, so how do you resist the temptation to make your own performance bigger in order to sort of compete with them? Does that make sense?

Yes, I know exactly what you mean. The way I’ve been approaching that is really leaning into what James Ijames wrote about Juicy in the stage directions - “he is beautiful, he is soft in temperament” and being true to that. Honestly, I just give room to the other actors and lean on them like “Y’all take the big, and I’ll go ahead and be the eye of the storm and we’ll push through.” I hope that answers the question…

It does. I suppose it’s similar to the challenge of playing the title character in Hamlet, which is how to make a more introverted character compelling.

Yes, and I will say it’s in the soliloquies, the direct address where Juicy gets to share with the audience, that you get to see a little bit more of that introvert character. When you come and see the show, I hope you’ll feel “Oh, I got a peek into who he is” and see more of his story and arc throughout the play.

Juicy sounds like an excellent fit for you, but what aspect of playing the role do you think is the biggest stretch for you?

I would say the biggest stretch for me as Juicy, truthfully, is really saying “yes” to the softness. Because sometimes in being soft you feel like you might be being pushed around or that you’re giving away your power as an actor, that you’re allowing all these things to happen to you. Something that Margo stressed is that Juicy is not a victim, but a survivor, and if you are a survivor you are constantly moving forward. These things may hit you, but that doesn’t mean necessarily that they stick. So that has been one of the things for me, leaning into the softness and knowing the difference between relinquishing power and owning it. There is power in being soft, there’s power in being gentle.

And I’m rarely moved by performances where I feel like the actor is just playing the victim. To me that’s not very interesting.

Exactly. If the whole time they are a victim then there’s nowhere to go, we’re at the one note. James Ijames wrote a beautiful play with so much nuance and so many elements that victimhood is not where Juicy lives.

Let’s talk a little about your background. Where were you born and raised?

I am born and raised in the Bay Area. I’m from East Oakland, so yes, I’m Bay Area 510 down! [laughs]

Were you a theater kid in school?

I’m going to say “Yes and.” In elementary school, I was in our school play and we did the same play every year.

Which play was what?

It was called “The Joy Story.” I went to a private Christian school and the story was about FAO Schmaltz coming in and converting to Christianity instead of taking over the small toy store. So I was in that show but then when I got to high school I did not transfer that passion for theater. I was like “I don’t know if theater is necessarily my thing.” In college at Chabot was where I joined the theater department, ran into Margo and Dov Hassan and Linda [Amayo-Hasan]. I’ve been bitten and I’m glad about it.

When did you start to think acting was more than just something fun to do, that it might be a career for you?

That was at Chabot (so shout out to Chabot!). A lot of my friends were going to the PCPA (Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts) in Santa Maria, and I remember seeing the poster in the hallway and I was like, “Okay, this school looks pretty cool.” I had done emerging works at Chabot and I was like “I think theater might actually be my thing.” I took a couple of theater history classes, and then it was the Greek plays I read, like Antigone and Oedipus. I thought “This is awesome! Okay, there may be a place for me within this artform.” And I haven’t looked back.

Schools like PCPA interest me because for so many people making a life in the theater they’re an integral part of what got them to where they are. What was that experience like for you?

PCPA was a two-year Acting training program which was intensive yet intense [laughs], six days a week. I learned a lot in terms of craft, and one thing I remember them telling you was that “You’ll know if this is the thing for you.” And I walked out of there knowing that I want to perform, I want to be onstage, or to be a theater maker for the remainder of my life.

It’s a very good program. Still have some great friends and colleagues out of there, Shakespeare training and musical theater training, so I’m grateful.

Do you have any dream roles you really hope to play some day?

First one in my mind is Bynum in Joe Turner’s Come and Gone by August Wilson. I have years to go until I can play that role.

Yes, that one’s definitely a ways off for you in terms of age, but that’s okay - it just means you have plenty of time to prepare for it. [laughs]

I told ya I plan on being in this for the rest of my life, so you know you gotta think long! I would love to play Aaron in Titus Andronicus, I would like to produce The Gospel at Colonus, which is the Black adaptation of Oedipus at Colonus, and … I would like to be Jimmy Early in Dreamgirls or the Cowardly Lion in The Wiz. Either one of those, I would be very happy in.

And you’re the right age to play either of those roles right now, so…

See? So who knows? They might be right around the corner.

(all photos by Jessica Palopoli)

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