Review: Kushner's new show takes on racism

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 (UPI) -- Never underestimate the power of a Pulitzer Prize to make any work by a playwright who wins one, even a play as uneven as Tony Kushner's "Caroline, or Change," a bankable commodity.

This new work premiered for a limited run at the off-Broadway just as Kushner's "Angels in America," the epic work that won him a Pulitzer, was being presented as a movie by HBO. It has done such good business at the Public Theater box office in spite of mixed reviews that its run already has been extended for a second time, through Feb. 1.

"Caroline" is an autobiographical fable in the form of a chamber opera focusing on the subtler aspects of racism the playwright remembers from his Louisiana childhood in the early 1960s. It is shorter than the two part "Angels" but seems more ponderous and preachy.

Its chief flaw is in making the black maid in the title role a rigid, uncompromising woman who is less sympathetic than she should be in efforts to maintain her dignity in relationships with her white employers, a Jewish family living in Lake Charles, La.

That is not to say there is little to enjoy in "Caroline," which is written with Kushner's usual dazzling opulence and wry wit, played by a strong cast headed by Tonya Pinkins, and enriched by musical score by Jeannie Tesori of "Thoroughly Modern Millie" fame. Every word in this stage work is sung and there is a Supremes-like trio that appear when Caroline turns on her radio and a sort of angel called The Moon who floats in the sky, providing commentary and promising change.

The plot hinges on the habit of an 8-year-old boy named Noah Gellman to leave change in the pockets of his clothing when they go into the home laundry, to the dismay of his Yankee stepmother, Rose. In an attempt to teach Noah the value of money, she decrees the maid-of-all-work, Caroline, can keep any money she finds in her stepson's pockets (the "change" in the show's title) before she puts his clothes into the washing machine.

Caroline is meticulous in doing her duty, much of it restricted to the Gellman's windowless basement, but keeping a child's money is against her convictions as to what is right or wrong, and she refuses. Her decision leads to a crisis in the Gellman household, complicated by a visit from Rose's Socialist father who distrust blacks, that leads Caroline to quit her job.

Kushner sets up this clash of wills in an economic structure that has relegated most female blacks to domestic service as a microcosmic reflection of the growing civil rights movement in the American South at the time of President John F. Kennedy's assassination. However, he makes no attempt to make a heroine of Caroline or to make her a surrogate mother to Noah, although the boy would like it if she were.

Money is very much the subtext of this musical. No one seems to have enough of it, certainly in the case of Caroline's three luxury-loving children. Noah's father mopes around the house playing the clarinet rather than bringing home the bacon, and Noah's visiting grandparents are materialistic although critical of capitalism.

Even Caroline feels that the offer of Noah's pocket change is not just to punish the boy but her employer's way of making up for her lower-than-ordinary wages.

In addition to the maiden in the moon and the girl trio playing the role of a radio and putting into words Caroline's resentments, there are actors who bring the washing machine and dryer to life and another actor who plays a bus. Only an extraordinarily talented playwright could pull these flights of fantasy off without seeming contrived, but Kushner does it with style and humor that make them completely acceptable.

George C. Wolf, producer of the Public Theater who originally directed "Angels in America," has directed "Caroline" with his usual finesse, never allowing the story to stray from Noah's point of view. Pickens, who won a Tony Award for "Jelly's Last Jam," turns in an impressive performance as the uptight Caroline, and Harrison Chad gives a polished performance beyond his years as Noah. Veanne Cox is superb as the Yankee wife who just wants to be her black maid's friend.

Riccardo Hernandez' upstairs/downstairs set is cleverly constructed and effectively lighted by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer. Paul Tazewell's 1960s costumes are period perfect. Tesori's score also pinions the period with references to the blues, jazz-funk, soul, and Jewish klezmer music.