When preparing a complex meal, it takes time overall at first. Storytelling can be like that too. In Zora Howard's “Stew,” which aims to heal, talk and cook, the present begins slowly and the plot simmers into frivolity before ending dramatically.
Meals and Families are in the midst of this 90-minute present, which premiered off-Broadway in 2020, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama, and is now at the Gloucester Stage Firm until July 23. Jenna McFarland Lord's nice set — kitchen yellow-flowered white curtains, orange formica counters, lots of brown wood — Mama Tucker (Cheryl D. Singleton) makes a staple stew to feed her church family for a year. An important day. As she sings gospel music and boils water for tea, a terrible noise outside startles her, but her mother convinces herself and her family that someone's tire has burst. She's too busy to analyze, and neither are her girls Nelly and Lillian and her grandson Lil Mama.
Cheryl Singleton as Mom in Gloucester Stage Firm's “Stew.” (Courtesy of Jason Development)
Former WBUR contributor Rosalind Bevan directs the brilliant physical movements of the Tucker clan as they help their mothers stir pots, wash vegetables and clean up messes while they argue and fuss with their heads strictly covered. Seventeen-year-old Nelly (Janelle Grace) has someone she loves. JR, the husband of Lillian (Breezy Leigh, who recently appeared in Huntington's “Pleasure & Pandemic”), lacks movement. And my mom is a widow. There is no man of the home per se in this story, the other man, Tucker, is Lillian's son Junior, who is at the home of a good friend.
There is a tradition of just rushing through life's difficulties instead of sharing the burden. Over time, commentary or nods are made to the cyclical problems of the family, including teenage pregnancy, sad marriages, and loss. But the pressure is so light to keep the play central that the short production feels really long. Helpful is the physical comedy of Lil Mama by Sadiyah Dyce Janai Stephens. Lil Mama's childish stomping, gasping and exhaling is rather convincing. As the sisters fight in the house, Stevens attracts attention by eliciting laughter and sympathy.
One of the delightful scenes has Shakespearean references. Lil Mama is auditioning for “Richard III” and as soon as her family finds out, they all jump in and compete to see who can help her. They all repeatedly snatch each other's scripts to ship variations, with the mom having Lil Mama ship her own variations to her children who are giant candy potatoes. Nevertheless, the mother says in this scene, “If historical sorrow is most honorable, give me a lordship, and let my sorrow be frowned upon in higher places…” He starts with “and says the last line. Vernon, co-founder and director emeritus of the Excessive Dramatic League, repeatedly instructed on the field. It seems like a glimpse into something that may have been a dream that went unfulfilled due to life circumstances.
Janelle Grace and Sadiyah Dyce Stephens make fun of each other in Gloucester Stage Firm's “Stew.” (Courtesy of Jason Development)
The path forward for other individuals within the Tucker Clan is not dangerous, and when the key to thwart it is (virtually) leaked, it leads to an explosive battle that ends with a wall-staining sizzle sauce being thrown and a damaged bottle ending. The bang and the confusion are foreshadowing.
When life is at stake, it can be difficult to know which course to take. Nelly and Lillian discuss, at one level, the assurances (or lack thereof) of their respective paths. Still, viewers witness the biggest gut punch of all, leaving the entire family reeling from gravity by the end of Howard's story.
“Stew” runs July 23 at the Gloucester Stage Firm.
