Fat Ham

 Fat Ham
American Airline Theatre
April 1, 2023 

Photo courtesy of Fat Ham

Playwright James Ijames adapted Shakespeare’s Hamlet to tell the story of finding happiness through self-acceptance.  The stunning outcome is his Pulitzer Prize winning play, Fat Ham.  It is set at a family wedding celebration / bar-b-cue in the "American south…a kind of limited space between the past and the present."  Director Saheem Ali skillfully sculpts the moments in this piece so they deliver hardy laughs, while distinctly highlighting the plot points of a bold and poignant story.  The action rises as the family holds back their secrets.  The tension builds to the point of no return.  

Tio (played by Chris Herbie Holland) is helping his cousin, Juicy (played by Marcel Spears), set up the back yard for a bar-b-cue / wedding celebration.  Juicy’s mother, Tedra (played by Nikki Crawford), married his uncle, Rev (played by Billy Eugene Jones), only two weeks after the death of his father, Pap.  Juicy is unsure of his feelings for the events, until he is visited by Pap’s ghost (also played by Billy Eugene Jones), who tell him that Rev had him killed.  Pap wants Juicy to avenge his murder.  Juicy knows what he needs to do, and also  knows he can’t.  He’s too “soft.”  Rabby (played by Benja Kay Thomas), her son, Larry (played by Calvin Leon Smith), and her daughter, Opal (played by Adrianna Mitchell), arrive for the wedding celebration.  They all eat Rev’s bar-b-cue, sing karaoke, and play charades.  During charades, Juicy and his team act out a book title that mirrors Rev’s guilt.  This propels events to unravel faster that anyone can handle.  Juicy pushes Larry to come out to his mother, which motivates Opal and Rabby to uncover their private sides.  Tio speaks of his marijuana-induced vision for finding happiness, and everyone faces the music. 

Photo courtesy of Fat Ham

Mr. Ijames’ play is brilliantly structured.  His characters are complex and complete.  They open up about themselves at precisely the right moments to emotionally pull you into the events as they evolve.  His incorporation of Shakespeare’s soliloquies is genius.  These moments are personal.  They heighten the action, while deepening the psychological layers of the characters.  They are skillfully directed and masterfully performed. 

Marcel Spears as Juicy
Photo courtesy of Fat Ham

Marcel Spears is excellent as Juicy.  He has an ease about him that lures you into his predicament.  The audience understands his indecision, and is fully on his side.  Nikki Crawford and Billy Eugene Jones are fierce as Tedra and Rev.  Their timing and chemistry are consistently in sync.  Chris Herbie Holland delivers sharp humor in the role of Tio.  His monologue in the later part of the show is wicked, wild, and touching.  Calvin Leon Smith portrays Larry as a strict conformist.  When he opens up, it is pure poetry.  Adrianna Mitchell catches your attention the minute she enters as Opal, and never lets you down.  Her character is determined and rebellious.  Benja Kay Thomas is funny as Rabby.  She imposes rules and expectations, then lets them all go for the good of her family.

Fat Ham is playing at the American Airline Theatre.  It is a MUST SEE!  

Domenick Danza