The Black Ensemble Theatre (BE) has a tradition of delivering solid theatre by telling compelling stories through song. In Sammy: A Tribute to Sammy Davis Jr., song and dance act as ornamentation to a drama depicting exceptional innate talent and steely perseverance in the face of raw bigotry.
Typical of a good BE show, a well told history lesson accompanies generous doses of infectious music. In Davis’s tribute, the audience is reminded what it was like to be an extraordinary talent living in a rigidly confining world. Born in 1925, Davis’s birth preceded the civil rights movement by almost 40 years. The bite of racism did not spare him because he was born and raised in NYC. Jim Crow may not have made it to the Big Apple but the color line sure did. Much of the ridicule Davis faced can only be called horrific. Despite that, his fame at the height of his career in the 50’s and 60’s stood on par with the established Hollywood deity of the day.
BE’s tribute splendidly recounted his success as a crooner who could make other people’s hits even bigger hits and who parlayed his success as singer into Broadway and Hollywood bank. As diminutive as Bruno Mars and as ubiquitous as Snoop Dog, he seemed to be everywhere during his time in the sun.
Glimpsing more of the captivating talent that characterized Sammy Davis Jr. during this tribute would have elevated the show’s appeal. The tiny 5’ 5” bon vivant sang in the lower registers and could control a song the way Zeus commands thunder. Dancing professionally on stage well before most kids start kindergarten, by the time he came of age his acumen as a dancer was oil slick and reached master class level.
The essence of all of those gifts made it to BE stage. As the production flowed, the cast mellowed more comfortably and effectively into their roles. Although Michael Adkins took on the role of Davis, other actors shared the duty of covering the many songs that Davis single handedly embedded into a generation. From Mr. Wonderful, to I’ve Gotta Be Me and finally with Kenny Davis’s bravura rendition of Mr. Bojangles, the review of Sammy Davis’s discography nostalgically revisited another time when the coda for excellence was very much different than it is today.
Even though mild cases of first night jitters peeped through, the cast displayed aplomb as it recounted through song, dance and dialog the components of a remarkable life. Emily Hawkins, making her first appearance on the BE stage, commanded attentive admiration for a singing voice that easily and beautifully filled the room and her sumptuous acting. In one sequence in which she portrayed May Britt, Davis’ Swedish born second wife, she effortlessly displayed how the craft of acting gets done. With bags packed and a heart leaden with regret; she was announcing she was leaving Davis. The whole theater sat captivated by her performance.
Skillfully juxtaposing laughter and tears is a BE hallmark. Sammy: A Tribute to Sammy Davis Jr. was no exception.
Sammy: A Tribute to Sammy Davis Jr.
Through January 21st, 2018
Black Ensemble Theatre
4450 N. Clark St.
773-769-4451
