This Play Remains at Crossroads

"I am not asking you to sit through a sermon. Nor am I asking you to be hypocritical, but when we give others a chance, many times we discover that our preconceived notions were wrong."

Gerald Howard, the director of Crossroads, states this on the back of the program. Unfortunately, Crossroads does not inspire us to reevaluate our "preconceived notions." The play grapples with the complex issues of race and gender relations in ways that, although occasionally interesting, are ultimately predictable.

The play, written by Andretta Hamilton '91 and Melanie Williams '91, takes place at a Black college in 1964. Evelyn (Tamara Duckworth) is a young woman who must choose between two men: the wealthy, philandering Charlie (Randal Jean Baptiste), and the militant civil rights activist Ian (Bernard B. Fulton III). Both men expect her to show fidelity and solidarity toward their respective stances on civil rights. Evelyn must decide whether to finish school and fight segregation from within, as Charlie does, or to protest and risk arrest with Ian.

Evelyn is suspended from school after being arrested during a protest against segregation at a local store. Charlie offers to use his influence to repeal the suspension, while Ian asks her to join him, and other protesters, in Mississippi. The choice between the two types of resistance is ostensibly the crossroads at which Evelyn stands--when she decides to leave both men, this demonstrates a newfound maturity and independence.

Although the play raises many intriguing questions about the civil rights movement, the insights offered by the various characters do little to illuminate the issue. Everyone except Evelyn has a firm grip on their opinions and has no problem stating them.

But these insights are not very original, and they are often expressed in cliches. Lines like "You have to be able to love someone enough to let them go" occur too frequently to be overlooked. This stale dialogue undermines the seriousness of the play's message.

Surprisingly, Evelyn is one of the sketchiest characters. Many of her lines--"I realize now that I have a lot of growing up to do"--merely illustrate her confusion and do not advance her character. She comes across as weak and ineffectual, too willing to be swayed by the other characters' advice. Her burst of independence at the end is incongrous and seems to demonstrate more a desire for an inspirational conclusion than for logical character development.

Another problem with the ending is its abrupt shift to feminism. The authors construct a plot in which the issue of civil rights is entangled with the need to choose the right man. Although Charlie and Ian are always viewed as somewhat manipulative, their attempts to dominate Evelyn remain unquestioned until the final scene.

The parallels between Evelyn's dilemmas about her future and her lover are heavy-handed and trite, and the authors make Evelyn seem shallow and foolish. Her realization that she does not need a man's guidance attempts to save the play from sexism, but this epiphany still comes much too late.

Given the simplicity of the characters, the actors perform admirably. Both Fulton and Baptiste are excellent, and each manages to combine his political leanings with his sexual urges. Baptiste is slimy and arrogant, yet entirely believable. Fulton's militant idealism shines through in his final attempt to woo Evelyn, a stirring monologue about fighting oppression.

Duckworth's Evelyn is too strong-willed to be as confused as she is throughout the play, although her conviction makes the jarring ending somewhat credible. Mecca Nelson brings life to the flat, emotionless Ruth, Evelyn's roommate. Tim Nelson's cameo as a radical, energetic speaker captures the emotional tension of the civil rights movement, and he succeeds in making his dogmatic lines interesting and even inspirational.

Howard does the best he can with the limited script and space, but he gives in to preachiness. Evelyn's struggle, as a privileged African-American, is relevant in light of recent events at Harvard, such as the Confederate flag scandal and the dearth of minority faculty. The question of how to achieve equality is particularly pertinent. Howard hammers this point home by making each character's motivations and views clear, though not subtle.

In addition, Howard has printed his statement about the play on the back of the program. This passage is obvious and unnecessary, and it detracts from the play, making Crossroads seem that much more pedantic. In his remarks, Howard tells us that "the purpose of this play is not just to entertain but, more importantly, to make you think." Unfortunately, Crossroads takes these words too literally, sacrificing complexity and originality to get its message across.