REVIEW: The timing of the IBTC’s ‘The Colored Museum’ couldn’t be better

While the rest of the country got ready to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary over the weekend, the Indianapolis Black Theater Company (IBTC) reminded audiences there’s more to the story with its production of “The Colored Museum.”

It was a hot and humid Thursday night before a holiday weekend, Mass Ave was packed and I struggled to find a seat, let alone a place to park, for the sold-out opening night performance of “The Colored Museum.” Needless to say, it was worth every second. 

Directed by Deborah Asante and choreographed by Shawn Cowherd, “The Colored Museum” is onstage at The District Theatre through July 11.

Written by Tony Award-winning playwright George C. Wolfe, “The Colored Museum” is considered a landmark of American theater. The play first premiered at the Crossroads Theatre of New Jersey in 1986 before moving to the Public Theatre in New York City. Though the show never premiered on Broadway, it was performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1987 before opening in regional theaters across the country. 

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“The Colored Museum” is a lot of things; it’s a satirical, overly dramatized sketch comedy play with music that shatters harmful stereotypes about Black people and culture in America while also poking fun at them. The story takes place within the halls of a “museum,” with a live percussionist (Komoyaka King), and a rotating ensemble cast singing, dancing and acting out each of the eleven “exhibits.”

The IBTC’s production of “The Colored Museum” features a star-studded lineup of performing artists — most of whom Hoosier theatergoers might already be familiar with — including PsyWrn Simone, Clarissa Michelle, empressnikia, John Singleton, Eward Strickling Jr., Alicia “The UnCuT Diamond” Sims, Empress Marlena, Tre’Vaughn and Anya C. Carlton.

Clarissa Michelle opens the show with “Git on Board,” a monologue that recontextualizes the Trans Atlantic slave trade as a commercial flight from the African Gold Coast to Savannah, Georgia. A cheery, almost robotic, turned frenzied flight attendant, Miss Pat (Clarissa Michelle), welcomes guests aboard the “celebrity slaveship,” instructing them on the rules and safety measures for their trip through nearly 300 years of African American history, trauma and “turbulence.” 

As far as opening scenes go, this one is spectacular and sharp, and Clarissa Michelle’s performance is electric. As the show progresses, the scenes get funnier, but they also get deeper and darker as the trauma African Americans faced throughout history is threaded through fake smiles, quips and jazz hands. This isn’t exactly a ‘sit back and relax’ kind of show, but it’s also not the kind you might expect to find an emotional release at the end of. 

The catharsis comes from the shared cultural experience of sitting in a theater with your neighbors and friends; from sitting with the content and realizing that the Black experience isn’t one-size-fits-all and isn’t all we are. 

The engagement with the show was insane — beyond just call-and-response. I’ve actually never seen a crowd get so excited and riled up for a show, or seen a show get a standing ovation before it’s over, but I guess there is a first time for everything.

Perhaps the most loved sketch of the night was the “Last Mama-on-the-Couch Play,” which parodies shows like “A Raisin in the Sun” and “For Colored Girls who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf.” The scene speed-runs through a range of Black theatrical stereotypes, with Strickling as Walter-Lee-Beau-Willie-Jones, Empress Marlena as the religious matriarch, or “well-worn mama on the well-worn couch,” and Simone stepping in as Medea Jones, representing the tragic sister/Black Medea character.

After each character has accepted an award for their outstanding performance, the sketch turns from overly exaggerated melodrama to high-octane all-Black musical. It’s a balanced blend of beloved parody, calling out productions that have weaponized Black trauma porn and cultural stereotypes, while making a mockery of the singing and dancing survival tropes in Black musicals that make them palatable to more contemporary (white) audiences.

It’s a lot to digest, the whole show is, really. But it’s done very, very well.

After the show, I got curious, so I looked up what the playwright had said about his show. Wolfe described “The Colored Museum” as “an exorcism and a party.” If that’s not enough to convince you to see it, maybe the arguing wigs or Normal Jean and the egg she laid will.

Beyond the satire and jokes, “The Colored Museum” challenges viewers to think critically about the Black experience and which aspects of our culture might be worth holding onto or fighting for and which parts we can let go of.

I love that this show is bold and unapologetic. I love that it makes the viewer a little uncomfortable while also making them feel seen in ways that simply aren’t talked about enough. And I especially love that this cast gave everything to the performance, despite the heat and several phone interruptions, and that I felt like the intermission, however necessary, interrupted something sacred.

The IBTC easily solidified itself as one of the best performing arts organizations in the city, dedicated to healing and connection through storytelling. They talk the talk and walk the walk. Every. Single. Time. I think it would be a shame to miss out on this production.

“The Colored Museum” is onstage at The District Theatre, 627 Massachusetts Ave., through July 11. The show is approximately two hours with one intermission, and recommended for audiences ages 16 and older. Tickets are $18-$20. For more information, visit indydistricttheatre.org. 

Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.