In keeping with the mission of Philadelphia’s Inis Nua Theater Company — “ to produce contemporary, provocative plays from Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales reflecting those cultures’ new identities in today’s world” — British-Indian playwright Lolita Chakrabarti’s ‘Hymn’ is mounted on the stages of The Drake in April.
To go with Chakrabarti’s story of men forming surprisingly deep bonds despite all-odds, Inis Nua presents ‘Hymn’ as a tale of brotherly love and affection told by actors Dwayne Alistair Thomas, Garrick Vaughan and director Eric Carter.
“This is a story of brothers who meet under strange circumstances,” said Carter during a rehearsal break from ‘Hymn’. “One thing that stuck out for me was its authenticity – it is about two men, two Black men. After I read it, I thought about my father and my uncle, and all the men I grew up with, and considered how they loved and trusted one another; how they supported each other. It’s not sexual or physical. Hymn is about two men who grow to respect and love each other. We all need that – not just Black men, but men in general. We have so much pressure on our shoulders every time that we walk out to the world.”
Actor Alistair Thomas, renowned for his Emmy-nominated work on FX’s ‘The Americans’ and HBO’s ‘We Own This City’, seconds that emotion: “Men are not allowed to be emotional, save for anger. But love can be aggressive, as long as it doesn’t cross the threshold into sheer violence. And Garrick and I, we both have stories that connect with ‘Hymn’, and with that of Eric Carter. Men loving each other without issue is the sort-of care that we need. Men are hurting without it.”
In personalizing ‘Hymn’, opera vocalist-actor Vaughan reached into the joy of Black life and existence, “and not the usual tropes of gangs and racism,” he said. “To be able to speak such a powerful message of love is important.”
Vaughan too has a deeper meaning to ‘Hymn’ in that he recently was able to connect with his long-lost stepbrother and another side to his family that the actor never realized existed.
“To go through this journey for Gil and Benny – the characters in ‘Hymn’ – is hauntingly reminiscent of what I’m going through in real life.”
With such thoughtful actors, director Carter – renowned for his work as a company member of West Philly’s Theatre in the X and acting work in film and television – said it was easy casting Vaughn and Alistair Thomas as the threesome united at the end of the audition process as friends.
“I picture myself in every role that I cast, and as I do that, I go over this mental Rolodex of actors that I know in my head – see who is the closest to the characters on the stage,” says the director. “Dwayne brought weight and grounded-ness to his role. And I saw Garrick do ‘The Color Purple’ and knew he could handle these lengthy monologues — because musicals are just monologues with rhythm. Both of these actors are believable in the moment. The contrasts between these two actors when they speak is just beautiful.”
Just like music. Just like brothers.
