A Brief Preview of THE BROTHERS SIZE from Director Jason Phelps, by Dr. David Glen Robinson
The Brothers Size is a relatively new play, first produced in 2007, and it is Part II of the Brother/Sister Plays trilogy by Tarell Alvin McCraney. Still, that is a span of ten years and our world is in a huge and fast-paced period of social change—Ferguson and the rise of Black Lives Matter took place only a little more than two years ago. So I originally asked director Jason Phelps if Capital T Theatre had updated the script or stage play in any way. Phelps pointed out that with regard to contracts, etc., adapting a living playwright’s work was frowned upon just as a business matter.
Then Phelps took the question and seemed to look through it and the issues it addressed. “I think that without any changes the play is really relevant to what’s going on in the world. It’s about what it means to have brothers and about being in that deep kind of relationship. And it’s not just about families of birth, but families of choice as well. Connection is a source of strength in a difficult world.”
“It’s important, too, that The Brothers Size is very poetic in the way it is written. And while part of the narrative is indeed about issues of liberation and prison and other things, the play is much more about caring for each other. And that’s what drives this play.”
“The other thing that is very important to The Brothers Size is the connection to West African Yoruba mythology. All of the characters - Ogun, Elegba, and Oshoosi - are named after Yoruban Orishas, or spirits, who carry out the words and deeds of the divine God. We see how the characters embody the qualities of their namesakes as they live their lives.”
Phelps noted that a précis of Yoruba mythology and the gods addressed in the play would be included in the program. The Brothers Size opens its run on Thursday October 26, 2017 at Hyde Park Theatre in central Austin.
The Brothers Size
by Tarrell Alvin McCraney
Capital T Theatre
October 26 - November 18, 2017
Thursdays - Saturdays at 8 p.m.
Tickets $20 and VIP $30 available online via BuyPlayTix (click here)
