Bayou Blues

Reviewed by Deborah Klugman
Solo Queens Fest at Bootleg Theatre
Through November 18

RECOMMENDED

In Bayou Blues, part of the 2018 Solo Queens Fest at Bootleg Theatre, writer/performer Shaina Lynn mixes storytelling and spoken word to relay her experience as a woman of color from New Orleans. The material is something of a patchwork, with anecdotes that could use fleshing out. Also, in performance, oddly, Lynn appears to avoid eye-contact with the audience. On the other hand, this is a performer who exudes a vital and attractive persona, and the production, directed by Dana Gourrier and produced by Julian Karahalios, is beautifully mounted, resonant with music and visuals. A highlight is Lynn’s dynamite display of “bounce,” that uniquely sensual and provocative form of hip-hop associated with New Orleans culture.

The most personal element of the piece relates to Lynn’s experience as a person whose skin is perceived as too dark, and she relays anecdotes where, as a young girl, she’s tormented by other children and her self-esteem is brought low. A related thread has her donning a green mask to participate in the annual Mardi Gras, a festivity her mother disapproved of and had forbidden her to engage in. A third major element is her recounting of her experience of Hurricane Katrina; though she personally managed to escape the storm, some friends and family members did not, and we hear of what happened to them.

The show also furnishes edifying facts relating to the history of racism in the city: we learn about tignon laws, which mandated that a woman of color wear a headscarf in public at all times. Lynn appends her monologue with illustrations of such women, and there’s also wonderful eye-pleasing animation, from Ilana Kirschbaum and Julia Newhide that runs in tandem with other sections of the text. A dynamite musical trio (Thomas Mims III on clarinet, Ben Zurier on drums and Karahalios on bass), opens the show and accompanies Lynn throughout.

Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. Performance times vary; through November 18th. (213)-289-3856 or bootlegtheater.org. Running time: 50 minutes with no intermission.