A Soldier’s Play

With inferences of segregation and the generalizations of inter-racial despisement, playwright Charles Fuller's, A Soldier's Play is impactful and filled with suspense and intrigue. However, while at this highly anticipated play at the CIBC Theatre, I immediately noticed a lack of theatrical exuberance usually felt on press night. Maybe it was the gloom of the day, the dim-lighted production that lewd you into a sleep-like daze. Or were our minds focused on the Chicago Mayoral election results? Whatever it was, something was missing.  The time was 1944, and in the segregated South, a mystery is about to be revealed in the fictitious town of Fort Neal, Louisiana—unfolding a murder investigation of the Sergeant in an all-black unit. The original Off-Broadway Production of A Soldier's Play in 1981 was at the Negro Ensemble Company, founded by Douglas Turner Ward, Robert Hooks, and Gerald S. Krone, which focused on the black experience that produced such great playwrights as August Wilson and Suzan-Lori Parks.  Focusing on the dichotomy of white supremacy over a race depicted as unintelligent, lacking the social skills of leadership, we gaze into the past where one black man, Sergeant Vernon C. Waters, seeking acceptance by the white society and feeling that shiftless Negroes reflected poorly on him, with contentment, he degraded his black troop just to be seen as human. Displaying his full wrath on Private C.J. Memphis, Walters humiliates him as worthless to society, causing Memphis to commit suicide.  

The National Tour of A Soldier's Play is a dark reminder of our historical past, where we looked more at the color of our skin than the content of our character. Captain Richard Davenport, a rare black Army officer, has been sent to investigate the killing, which some feared was at the hands of the local Ku Klux Klansmen. However, with Davenport being black, the White Captain Charles Taylor became infuriated with the Army sending a black man, knowing he could never arrest the white men he believed caused Waters's murder.  This presentation of A Solidier's Play felt more like a National Geographic history lesson than an intriguing murder mystery. With such a stimulating narrative of bigotry, hatred, and suspense and its compelling start where Sergeant Waters (played by Eugene Lee) drunkenly stammers out one of the most famous lines in this play, "They still hate you!", which would have an audience sitting on the edge of their seats, this production felt sluggish—never reaching its zenith. Even the provocative mixture of having a Black Captain overseeing the investigation and mentioning the Klan, NAACP, and the N-Word, only seemed to raise a few eyebrows.  

And despite some notable acting by Eugene Lee, William Connell, Sheldon D. Brown, and Norm Lewis, it never climaxes to the captivating storyline that won the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Ultimately, the real killer in the play was the demons that caused Waters to despise his race and seek approval from a race of men who would never accept the hue of his skin. This demonic influence for acceptance causes him to kill his race, leading to Captain Davenport solving the murder of him being killed by his race. 

The question is if A Solidier's Play is worth a ticket, yes! There is some fantastic acting in this play, and it's a powerful reminder that our society still has a long way to go before we reach equality, but don't get upset if you leave feeling something was missing. 

Let's Play Theatrical Review Recommends A Soldier's Play at the CIBC Theatre.

CIBC Theatre

A Soldier's Play

Written by Charles Fuller

Directed by Kenny Leon

April 4 - April 16, 2023