By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The less you know about The West Side Show Room‘s new play the more you’re going to enjoy it.
That’s what director Jaylen Marks says about “Barbecue,” a thought-provoking comedy that has both literal shocks — with a Taser — and figurative ones, too.
“Once you talk about the show, it gives away the shock factor,” said Marks, a 2012 Guilford High School graduate who is making his directorial debut.
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The play begins with a simple enough premise: The O’Mallery family gathers in a public park for a barbecue and to have a much-needed conversation with their sister Barbara about her drug use.
“It goes in one direction and then becomes something different and unexpected that really is surprising in a pretty fantastic way,” said Epic Jones, artistic director of the West Side Show Room, 1414 N. Main St., on the city’s North End.
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(Minor spoilers ahead)
The first scene ends with a blackout. When the lights go back up, the O’Mallery family appears again in the same park and same situation. Only this time the cast is Black instead of white.
“It seems like one thing on the surface, but it really has a lot of depth and interesting things to say about family power dynamics and race power dynamics in our country,” Jones said. “But in a highly entertaining way.”
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Marks said the show will have you laughing and it will challenge you to reflect on your internal biases.
“When we had the table read of the show, we found layers and layers and layers of conversation, of topics, of adversities,” Marks said. “The deeper you think about the show, the more realization you come to.”
The play was written by Robert O’Hara, winner of the NAACP Best Play and Best Director Awards. It debuted in New York in 2015.
“Those who actually come and see it a second time will begin to see what everything was and understand the entirety of the play,” Marks said.
The show is produced in partnership with Matthew Simpson and Joshua Patterson of Eight Fifteen Capital, a capital investment company that previously produced “The Wind and The Breeze” a year ago at the West Side Show Room.
West Side Show Room is a Public Access Theater supported by donations and grants, including one from The Community Foundation of Northern Illinois, and because of that you can see the play for free.
West Side Show Room also has a membership program that offers rewards in exchange for donating to the theater.
“We’re saying to our community that this is a partnership,” Jones said. “We believe it’s important for everybody to have access to theater and the performing arts the same way that they have access to a library because it contributes to an educated and informed society.”
The play debuts on Friday and runs through Oct. 29.
Know before you go | ‘Barbecue’
What: “Barbecue” by Robert O’Hara; directed by Jaylen Marks and produced by Matthew Simpson and Joshua Patterson
Where: The West Side Show Room, 1414 N. Main St., Rockford
When: Oct. 13-29
This week’s shows:
- 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13
- 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 14
- 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 15
Admission: Free (donations accepted)
Reserve tickets: Go HERE
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas