by Rachel Stoll~

Provocative, inappropriate, lewd, crass, and offensive, Playwright Branden Jacob-Jenkins’s play Neighbors pushes boundaries in its West Coast premiere. The “18 or older” recommendation by The Matrix Theatre Company is well earned due to Neighbors strong language, challenging discussion on race and identity, and graphic sexual moments. Director Nataki Garrett does not pull any of the punches in Mr. Jacob-Jenkin’s writing, fully allowing Neighbors to create an atmosphere of shock, discomfort, and tension.

Richard Patterson’s (Derek Webster) life is disturbed when the Crows, an obnoxious and stereotypical African-American family in blackface, move into the house next door. Richard is an African-American academic living in a post-racial world with his lovely white wife, Jean Patterson (Julia Campbell) and his daughter Melody (Rachae Thomas). The infiltration of the Crows into his neighborhood and his family deeply disturbs Richard who expresses his discomfort with racial slurs and avoidance. This causes tension and rapidly begins to impact his family, especially his relationship with his wife who is told by Richard that she cannot understand how he feels because she is white. The tension in the house comes to boil as Richard begins a new job, his daughter Melody begins to act out, and Jean starts questioning his feelings about the new neighbors and her feelings about her life choices.

The discussion of race and racism is not new, but the approach that is taken and the history that fills in the gaps becomes interesting and mostly fresh in Neighbors. There is something of a direction provided to this discussion at the end of the play when emotions boil over and things fall apart. Ms. Garrett’s direction of the final scene created an audible discomfort for the audience, who were unsure how to react.

The driving undercurrent of plot is broken up by pieces performed by the Crows, who are minstrel performers by profession. These skits within the larger play provide their own interesting discussion of stereotypes. The origins of minstrelsy evolved out of many types of entertainment and traveling shows. However, it is mostly popularized due to Thomas Dartmouth “Daddy” Rice’s portrayal of an old and crippled black slave named Jim Crow in 1828. This act became beloved in the U.S. and England, so Mr. Rice continued to perform his hit song which is performed in Neighbors: “Ebry time I weel about I jump Jim Crow”. Although these shows were stereotypes of blacks, it was not until the 1860′s that blacks became mainstream minstrel show performers.

The most interesting and relevant of these minstrel interludes in Neighbors is performed by Topsy Crow, played by Daniele Watts. Topsy’s piece starts out as a traditional minstrel show, but morphs after she declares she is going to express her own artistic vision. Ms. Watts’ performance is spot on in expressing Topsy’s vision that uses current music to make a point about the roles of race, stereotypes, and identity in our post-racial society. The question of “How post-racial are we?” hangs in the air throughout Mr. Jacob-Jenkin’s work.

The set design adds to the story with its strong placement in suburbia, and two identical home exteriors for the Crows and Pattersons. Two homes, divided by a driveway and some grass that look identical on the outside suggest a sort of social standardization of what it means to “make it” in the American dream. It is mentioned at least twice in the play that this is good, or upper-class neighborhood. The light and sound design work well for the setting, and is especially interesting during Topsy’s minstrel show due to the utilization of color, sound, and movement.

Although the discussion and concept in Neighbors is strong, the piece itself felt and lasted approximately 2.5 hours, not including the intermission and late start. With such an open and unspoken ending, it is likely that less investment in some of the sub-plots and shorter minstrel acts would help the play feel tighter. Occasionally the boundary-pushing of the play seems irrelevant and over-the-top, but it tends to work once the scene progresses. The play touches on the fringes of racism within ethnic groups, but does not explore that theme as deeply as it could mostly because the post-racial society discussion is difficult enough to fit into a full-length play. While the final scene did create a visible and audible discomfort in the audience, the staging of the curtain call was confusing to the audience who was unsure that the play was over. It did seem like an intentional decision, but it was unclear what staging the curtain call in that manner actually accomplished. The final scene adequately caused any feelings of discomfort and introspection wanted by the director and writer. Making the extension of that atmosphere last through the curtain call seemed unnecessary.

Even with a few awkward and slow moments, Neighbors creates a discussion that is valuable in a seemingly post-racial society. The portrayal of the Crows as minstrels was an interesting choice, and created some comic relief to balance the raw language and challenging discussions in the Patterson household. It should be reiterated that Neighbors is definitely not for those who are offended by use of racial slurs, sexual content, or crude humor.

Neighbors is performed Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sundays at 2:30pm through October 24^th.

The Matrix Theatre Company is located at 7657 Melrose Ave, between Fairfax and La Brea.

Ticket prices: $25.00 general admission

Reservations online at www.Plays411.com/Neighbors or by phone at (323) 960-7774.