<div dir="ltr"><br><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br><br><p><font face="Palatino"><b>An interesting tale of truth or fiction--“KNOCK ME A KISS” at Ensemble</b></font></p>
<p><font face="Palatino"><b><br></b>The
Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement which spanned the period
from about 1919 to 1929. It was the literary era when members of the
Great African American Migration, Negroes who had moved into the U.S.
Northeast and Midwest, asserted themselves in art, poetry, literature
and theatre. Participants included James Wendell Johnson, Cleveland’s
Langston Hughes, and Countee Cullen. </font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Parallel
to the Renaissance was the Niagara Movement, which stressed civil
rights, increased political representation, and integration. A rollout
of this was the NAACP, and growth of the African intellectual elite.
These were Negroes who were graduates of Harvard, NYU and other
prestigious universities. They included the likes of Booker T.
Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois.<br> <br>Du Bois was a sociologist,
historian, civil rights activist, author and editor. He was the first
African American to earn a PHD. He received the degree from Harvard, a
school he attended with the financial help of the integrated membership
of the Massachusetts church he attended. As an earlier supporter of
the Harlem Renaissance, and a believer in proper etiquette and ethical
actions, he insisted that “artists recognize their moral
responsibilities and remember that a black artist is first of all a
black artist.”<br> <br>In spite of his fame, not much is factually known
about the poet, Countee Cullen. He was a man of great definitive
poetry, but revealed little about himself in his writing or speaking.
Some reliable information about him emerged after 1918 when at about
age 9 he was adopted by Reverend and Mrs. Cullen. The circumstances of
the adoption were always veiled with questions about the Reverend and
Countee’s relationship. His poem, “The Shroud of Color,” is considered
to be the landmark of the Harlem Renaissance.<br><br>Cullen’s marriage
to Yolande Du Bois in 1928 was the Negro social event of the decade.
They divorced in 1930 in a shroud of secrecy. It was rumored that
Cullen was homosexual and his relationship with Harold Jackman, “the
handsomest man in Harlem,” was a major factor in the divorce. Another
cause may have been Yolande’s friendship with Jimmy Luncfore, a leading
Harlem bandleader who, along with Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway, drew
mass crowds of whites to the Cotton Club. Noted for the Luncfore
two-beat rhythm, he was long rumored to be involved with Yolande.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Charles
Smith’s semi-fictional “KNOCK ME A KISS,” which is now being staged at
Ensemble Theatre, melds the lives of W. E. B. Du Bois, Cullen, Yolande
Du Bois, and Luncfore, with the Harlem Renaissance. Taking place in
the Harlem home of Du Bois in 1928, the story discusses the on-going
African American conflicts of the time, the courting and marriage of
Cullen and Yolande, as well as Yolande’s relationship with Luncfore.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>The
production, under the direction of Caroline Jackson Smith, is
effective. The story unfolds well. Ron Newell’s realistic setting
helps develop the plot. Peg Parish’s costumes are era correct. The
acting is generally on-target.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Emily
Terry develops in Yolande De Bois a clear image of a young woman who is
driven by her devotion to her famous and fastidious father, but is
conflicted between her personal desire for a relationship. First there
is the flashy Luncfore. The alternative, her father’s choice , Cullen.
Marriage to the latter will create a desirable blending of negro
politics and the arts.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Dyrell
Barnett is excellent as the reticent, yet talented Countee Cullen. He
walks the fine line between honesty and half-truths with skill.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Kyle
Carthens reeks “playah” as the lustful Jimmy Luncfore. He gives just
the right levels of sensuality and driven-desire, to create a real
person.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Both Emily Terry as Lenora, Yolande’s best friend, and Pamela Morton, as Nina Du Bois, Yolande’s mother, are effective.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>Edward
Swan, portraying W. E. B. Du Bois, gives a surface level performance,
stumbling over lines and never creating a real personage.</font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br><i>Capsule
judgment: “KNOCK ME A KISS” is a well- conceived script that gives a
revealing view of the Harlem Renaissance and the changing picture of
American Negroes in the early 1900s. It gets an effective and involving
performance at Ensemble.</i></font></p><p><font face="Palatino"><br>“KNOCK
ME A KISS” runs Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through February 23,
2014. For tickets go to <a href="http://www.ensemble-theatre.com">www.ensemble-theatre.com</a> or 216-321-2930</font></p><font face="Palatino"><br>Special
treat: From 6:30 to 7 :30 at the Friday and Saturday performances of
“KNOCK ME A KISS,” "Harlem Jazz Receptions" & Open-Mic Poetry!
sessions will be held. They are free to ticket holders.<br><br><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">•••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br></font></div>