‘The Grove' expands the Ufot Family Cycle with a story both humane and moving
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Whether their role is large or small, the 13-member cast is aces, across the board. Aided by her design team, Timpo constructs an atmosphere that amounts to a kind of visual poetry, lending the play the quality of myth. (Timpo also helmed The Huntington's entrancing 2022 production of
Set in 2009, 'The Grove' is focused on Adiaha, an ambitious young writer played by Abigail C. Onwunali, who nearly sets the Wimberly Theatre stage on fire with her impassioned performance.
The play alternates between Adiaha's parents' home in Worcester, Mass., and the apartment in the Inwood section of New York City that she shares with her girlfriend, Kimberly Gaines (Valyn Lyric Turner), an artist. (Udofia, who grew up in Southbridge, Mass. about 25 miles from Worcester and attended Wellesley College, has dedicated her play to 'the young woman I once was.')
Adiaha is trying to summon the courage to talk with her deeply traditional parents, Abasiama (Patrice Johnson Chevannes) and Disciple (Joshua Olumide) about the fact that she is gay. It's clear that that would be an explosive conversation.
Of course, group portraits of a family coming apart at the seams are a staple of the theater: the Lomans, the Tyrones, the Youngers, the Wingfields – hell, all the way back to the House of Atreus. What matters is whether the playwright can deliver vividly individualized portraits within that larger picture.
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Udofia can, and does. Though father Disciple is a volatile, dogmatic, and narrowly religious guy who seldom communicates at a volume lower than a shout, 'The Grove' is not built around the tired binary of lovable victim and hissable villain. That path would be too easy and simplistic for a playwright of Udofia's skill.
Abigail C. Onwunali and Patrice Johnson Chevannes in "The Grove."
Marc J. Franklin
Adiaha has profound respect for her Nigerian heritage, which adds tension to the question of whether she will be forced to choose between living with authenticity or maintaining the loving bond she has with her parents. From start to lump-in-the-throat finish, Onwunali makes us feel the weight of that choice.
(Last November, when Dawn M. Simmons directed
In a captivating touch that underscores the family's connection to its history, five 'Shadows' (Ekemini Ekpo, Janelle Grace, Patrice Jean-Baptiste, Chibuba Bloom Osuala, and Dayenne Walters) dressed in traditional garb and representing the family's ancestors, circle the action of 'The Grove,'' speaking and singing in Ibibio, the language spoken by the Ibibio people of Nigeria.
As Udosen, described by the playwright as Adiaha's 'fun uncle,' Paul-Robert Pryce is a font of ebullience and charisma in every scene he's in — very entertaining to watch.
The play loses some steam in the scenes where Adiaha and Kim thrash out the issues in their relationship. 'The Grove' would benefit from some judicious trims there. But the bickering between the two young women can also be seen as part of Udofia's dramatic rigor and intellectual honesty. What Adiaha wants is to live a true life, which means an imperfect life.
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'Sojourners' was on
The response from the audience in the Wimberly Theatre Wednesday night was among the most fervent I've ever seen. Yes, the crowd doubtless included plenty of family and friends of the cast and the creative team, given that it was the show's official opening night.
But the burst of joy as they leaped to their feet at the end of the performance seemed utterly spontaneous. In any case, it was, without question, utterly warranted.
THE GROVE
Play by Mfoniso Udofia. Directed by Awoye Timpo. Presented by The Huntington at Wimberly Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center for the Arts. Through March 9.
Tickets start at $29. 617-266-0800,
Don Aucoin can be reached at
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