Local theater performs Demos-Brown's 'American Son'
Le Chat Noir is an intimate black box theatre and lounge located in downtown Augusta that is
host to a variety of shows and performances. (photo by CM Wahl)
By CM Wahl | Features editor
Le Chat Noir, French for "The Black Cat," is a small theatre located in the heart of downtown Augusta, at 304 Eighth St. It offers patrons intimate art experiences in the form of original plays, improv comedy, local films and burlesque shows, as well as a full service bar.
The theatre recently showcased the play "American Son," written by Christopher Demos-Brown and directed by Antonio Scales and Krys Bailey.
The play tells the story of a recently separated couple navigating a sea of heavy emotion while waiting for police to locate their missing son. Set inside the waiting room of the station, the play pulls audiences directly into the drama by running in real time without intermission. This allows attendees to feel the tense atmosphere as the main character, the missing boy's mother Kendra, frantically pleads with an officer to help.
This character's frustration is palpable as she attempts to respectfully address the obstinate officer despite his plethora of bias against her African American son. It isn't until her estranged Caucasian husband arrives that the officer begins to share information he claimed earlier not to have. The couple is then left alone to argue about whose fault it is that their biracial son has recently fallen in with the wrong crowd.
Years of repressed feelings erupt between them and blame is cast from both ends. Tensions grows higher upon the arrival of the investigating officer, a stern and callous man who forcibly removes the boy's father from the room after tempers flare. The officer then lectures Kendra on the "realities" of the world they live in as African Americans, shifting blame to her son for making choices he "should've known" to avoid.
In the final intense moments of the play, the couple is reunited and realize their only option is to lean on each other during this stressful time. Neither is equipped to deal with their own biases in a world where the authorities are both feared and necessary. These realizations no doubt cause the audience too to reflect on their own feelings on race, freedom, and respect for the law.
Executive director Krys Bailey remarks that the play's "significance is its relevancy."
Bailey states, "We had been rehearsing the play for three weeks when Tyre Nichols was murdered. This play is masterful in its revealing of the more insidious form of discrimination, and that's systemic racism."
Bailey went on to praise the play for doing an incredible job of portraying both sides: "the officers just doing their jobs and the parents worried about their child." The intentional draw of the audience makes them "almost like a jury" according to Bailey, because "facts are discovered pulling them from one side to the other until you realize there is no side."
The primary actors, Augusta University alumnus Raheema Johnson and costar Thomas Colechin, are, according to Bailey, "the best actors in Augusta currently and really the only ones who could tell this story and do it justice." Bailey also recognizes newcomer Jason Latimer and the pivotal role played by Antonio Scales who, under "his direction of his fellow actors, beautifully nuanced their performances."
"American Son" is a powerful reminder of the current state of the world we live in. Meaningful messages are sent out to provoke thought among all who witness it, both introspective and conversational.
As Bailey states, "The impact on the audience comes from the structure of the writing and the brilliance of its cast.”
Information on upcoming events can be found on Facebook under "Le Chat Noir" or at lcnaugusta.com.
Contact CM Wahl at cwahl@augusta.edu.
