December 06, 2005 @ 12:48 pm

The Color Purple On Broadway

Baria A. Razzaq

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The tale of an emotional and sexually abused little girl in a Black community in the last century, Purple doesn't come close to delivering the resounding drama as the film adaptation 20 years ago. In fact, the passion and sentiment conveyed by the characters in the novel and movie is just not palpable here. When the title character Celie, played by Tony nominated actress LaChanze, and her sister Nettie, (Renée Elise Goldsberry), broke out in song to share their love and feelings to each other, the result was neither heartfelt nor enduring. What could have been a loving display of two sisters about to be torn from each other was a ho hum performance of two folks just singing. right The best thing about the singing and dance in the musical was the performance of Felicia P. Fields in the role of Sofia (Celie's daughter-in-law). Fields demonstrated Sofia's bravado in song and words with such vigor and enthusiasm; she really brought the character to life. When she sang "hell no" in an ode to tolerating no abuse from her man, the audience quivered. Fields was one of the best casting choices for Purple. LaChanze, however, although beautifully acted, did not look the part of a character considered to be homely and unkempt. When Elisabeth Withers-Mendes’ character, Shug Avery, delivered the much-quoted line "You sho is ugly" to Celie, it was laughable since both characters were so good looking. A delightful addition to the cast was Lou Myers in the role of Celie’s blistering father-in-law, Ol’ Mister. Myers is a Broadway veteran often remembered for his role as Mr. Gaines in the television drama A Different World. The Color Purple musical was a respectable but unmoving effort. It just served to prove that as some books should not be made into movies, some movies should probably just stick to the big screen. The Color Purple debuted December 1st at the Broadway Theatre, 1681 Broadway at 53rd Street. To purchase tickets go to Telecharge or call 212-239-6200.

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