The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Washington, DC

 

(From top) Sabrina Lynne Sawyer, Kalen Robinson, Lauren Fraites, Kimberly Dodson, Khalia Muhammad, and Billie Krishawn in The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes. Photo by Teresa Castracane.

The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes, a new play by Vivian J. O. Barnes having its world premiere at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre, provides an unexpected series of events and indelible characters. It is a very funny character study of six college students at an HBCU (historically black college or university). They are the step team preparing for the upcoming Homecoming celebration, in which they will be featured as part of the football game’s half-time show. The pressure is on because they will be performing for an audience that will include Sea Mink-ettes from previous years (and generations). There are serious and timely themes at play: teamwork, camaraderie, body image, peer pressure, bullying, tradition, depression, and coping with stress from the need to succeed at school. The play defies easy categorization: it is part “A Different World” (the 1980s sit-com about life at an HBCU) with touches of an Agatha Christie mystery and some “Twilight Zone” supernatural eeriness thrown in for good measure.

Barnes, a playwright from Stafford, Virginia, has a keen ear for youthful banter with a liberal helping of profanity and unrestrained discussion of sexual matters. The characters she creates are recognizable and real. I hope that she will continue to develop the play: there is tremendous potential here, but there are also sections of the play that could use more focus. She is working with a director (Taylor Reynolds), choreographer (Ashleigh King), and design team who provide solid support, in addition to a versatile and talented cast.

Billie Krishawn is Shanteé, the group’s taskmaster and choreographer. Shanteé expects the same level of commitment from the members of the team, but they are late to rehearsal, or sloppy in their moves, or clumsy. She explains that stepping requires excellence and precision. As the performance date approaches, her mantra becomes, “If we can just make it through Homecoming,” as if their problems will all be solved. This is the third time I have been impressed by her performances, after the Arena Stage production of Angels in America and Ford’s Theatre production of Something Moving last year, each so different from the others that you might not realize they were being given by the same performer.

Lauren Fraites is Aleyse, the “new girl” on the team. Fraites is charmingly eager in her early scenes, but becomes more assertive as she becomes more comfortable, finally exploding. Kimberly Dodson is strong as Maya, the determined senior who is looking past Homecoming to graduation and graduate school with little patience for “fooling around,” since she is so focused. Sabrina Lynne Sawyer is Kiera, completely Beyoncé-obsessed, sometimes disturbingly so. Sawyer approaches her character with a wide-eyed innocence and amusing reactions to some of the spookier occurrences that defy explanation.

Kalen Robinson as Racquel and Khalia Muhammad as Gabby are almost two halves of one being. Their boisterous, uninhibited physicality, along with their rapid-fire delivery and word-play, give their performances both sparkle and fire. They make quite a team and, with the other cast members, these six become a true ensemble.

Kalen Robinson, Billie Krishawn, and Khalia Muhammad in The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes. Photo by Teresa Castracane.

Paige Hathaway’s set design focuses on a section of the seating area at the stadium, with a shining, sleek set, on either side of which are imposing stadium lights (later, the lights seem to take on a character of their own). While most of the play takes place in this area, a handful of scenes are set on a section of the stage’s apron, covered with artificial turf and hiding a space below. Minjoo Kim’s lighting design makes good use of effects with the stadium lights. However, the scenes staged downstage were difficult for me to see (from my seat in the center of row G), in part because of the staging (with the action at floor level), but also due to the very limited (too dim) lighting. I’m sure the scenes looked great from the theatre’s balcony, but I missed some key action in scenes where characters’ vulnerabilities are revealed.

Costumes, designed by Danielle Preston, consisted primarily of various appropriate forms of athletic wear ranging from sleek leotards to t-shirts and shorts, until the end of the show. Then we get to see just one of the dancers in the full regalia performing the dance number.  

Choreographer Ashleigh King has devised an intricate “routine” for the steppers, parts of which the cast perform numerous times. Sometimes the team performs totally in sync and sometimes with errors, as mandated by the script. I was disappointed that the playwright did not allow for the entire cast to be back onstage in full costume to perform the entire routine. As in A Chorus Line, that kind of finale (along with the surprise appearance of several band members) would have brought us some closure that we lacked. After spending 90 minutes watching the team prepare for their performance, we want to see the finished product.

Sabrina Lynne Sawyer, Kalen Robinson, Khalia Muhammad, and Billie Kershawn in The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes. Photo by Teresa Castracane.

Woolly Mammoth can always be counted on to produce challenging, cutting-edge plays that engage a diverse audience with contemporary sensibilities and that wrestle with important themes. Their performance space is warm and welcoming, a perfect location for trying out new perspectives, and hearing and encouraging previously unheard voices. The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes, which continues through March 4, is a good example of just that kind of work. Although I feel that the play would benefit from further refinement, it is a significant work by an exciting new playwright, who deserves our support.