KC native hits home with new play

According to Ennis King, a barbecue joint worker, “Broke-ology” is his scientific examination of two concepts.

“One, being broke,” Ennis explains. “Two, staying alive despite your broke-ness.”

Ennis is a character in “Broke-ology,” an affectionate new comic drama by Kansas City, Kan., native Nathan Louis Jackson, a writer for the NBC-TV series “Southland.”

It’s the current production at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s downtown Copaken Stage.

The play, which recently completed a run at New York’s Lincoln Center, focuses on the mercurial dynamics of the Kings, an black family living in inner city KCK.

Naturally, the local setting adds considerably to one’s interest in this melodramatic effort. But Jackson’s genuinely funny dialogue and heartfelt characters help it succeed despite its flaws.

David Emerson Toney leads the cast as William, the hardworking family patriarch who is suffering from multiple sclerosis.

His sons Ennis (Postell Pringle) and Malcolm (Larry Powell) struggle with some weighty decisions about what to do about their sickly dad and their respective careers.

Malcolm is home after graduating from the University of Connecticut and has been offered a summer job with the EPA. Ennis, who is struggling financially and whose girlfriend is about to give birth to his first child, is counting on Malcolm to take over much of their father’s care.

But Malcolm wants to return to Connecticut where he can pursue a much more promising career as an educator.

Both of these young men are facing the all-too-familiar reality of dreams deferred. While this may sound like depressing subject matter, Jackson depicts this family with such affection and good humor that the oppressive elements are tempered considerably.

The fourth character is Sonia (Shamika Cotton), William’s beloved late wife. We meet her in the play’s opening scenes that take place before the birth of their first child.

While happily married and clearly in love with her husband, she has dreams of artistic fulfillment that are thwarted by financial reality.

Although Sonia succumbs to cancer when her children are young, she sporadically returns to the play’s action in William’s visions. Like Marley’s ghost, her apparition brings more anxiety than comfort.

While William welcomes her visits, her complaints about her life with him only reinforce his feelings of inadequacy as a provider.

Indeed, Sonia’s scenes are the play’s most problematic elements. Her appearances are somewhat jarring in an otherwise realistic story.

Plus, the climax, which is telegraphed throughout the play, tends to let the brothers off the hook.

But Jackson’s dialogue and his skillful portrayal of everyday life are a big plus. His characters enthusiastically demonstrate their mutual affection through an ongoing game of dominoes.

The bickering brothers reinforce their bond when they pull a prank, stealing an ugly garden gnome from a neighbor’s yard.

Director Kyle Hatley draws warm performances from his cast, all of whom are folks you would like to spend more time with.

Jackson’s opus is not perfect, but it’s a warmhearted and funny drama that heralds the arrival of a promising new playwright.

“Broke-ology” runs through March 21 at the Copaken Stage, 13th and Walnut streets, Kansas City, Mo.

For information, call (816) 235-2700 or visit www.kcrep.com.

THEATER NOTES

The Theatre for Young America is presents “Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business” through April 16.

This musical, based on the popular stories by Barbara Parks, focuses on a gregarious first-grader who has “an unusual way of looking at life.”

Suitable for preschoolers, “Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business” can be seen at the H&R Block City Stage at Union Station, 30 W. Pershing Road, Kansas City, Mo.

Ticket information is available at www.tya.org or by calling (816) 460-2083.

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