In 1944, a black Sergeant is murdered on a Louisiana Army base, and one tenacious investigator must race against his white leadership to unravel the crime before they unravel him. A hair-raising drama that painfully still reverberates today, the mystery of Charles Fuller's Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece has finally arrived on Broadway for the first time, directed by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon.
Roundabout Theatre Company's lean, suspenseful and entertaining revival of Charles Fuller's A Soldier's Play, while it unfolds during World War II, feels quite relevant. Fuller's murder mystery won the Pulitzer in 1982, was turned into a successful film in 1984, and now makes a belated but momentous Broadway debut thanks to an appealing cast and Kenny Leon's firm directing hand. Why such staying power? Easy: American racism is evergreen.
The Roundabout Theatre Company's flawless revival of A Soldier's Play is such good medicine for Broadway's January blues that it might be enough just to tick off its merits: a gripping murder mystery heightened by crackling dialog, a first-class ensemble of actors in symphonic harmony, staging that audaciously adds a pinch of sex appeal to heat up its social consciousness, and just enough music to give it a pulsing rhythm and beat that delivers us to its shocking conclusion in just under two hours. That's the good news, and there's only good news to report.
1981 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2005 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2020 | Broadway |
Roundabout Theatre Company's Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2022 | US Tour |
North American Tour US Tour |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play | David Alan Grier |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Fight Choreography | Thomas Schall |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | A Soldier's Play |
2020 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Blair Underwood |
2020 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | David Alan Grier |
2020 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | A Soldier’s Play |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Director of a Play | Kenny Leon |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play | David Alan Grier |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | A Soldier's Play |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Play | Dede Ayite |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Play | Kenny Leon |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Play | Allen Lee Hughes |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play | David Alan Grier |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play | Blair Underwood |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Play | Charles Fuller |
2020 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design of a Play | Derek McLane |
Videos