The Double V
Reviewed by Deborah Klugman
The Matrix Theatre
Through November 24
So entrenched was systemic racism in the U.S. in the early 1940s that patriotic African-Americans were turned away when they sought to fight for their country at the onset of World War II.
Directed by Michael Arabian at the Matrix Theater, Carole Eglash-Kosoff’s play dramatizes the historical effort to allow black men and women to serve in the U.S. military in time of war. The “Double V” in the title references a campaign initiated by a small black-run newspaper in Pittsburgh that advocated victory over enemies abroad and victory over opponents of racial equality at home. The movement, which spread nationwide, was sparked by a letter to the editor from a real person, James G. Thompson of Wichita, Kansas, published in January 1942.
In Eglash-Kosoff’s telling, Jimmy (Preston Butler III) is an idealistic young man who wants to enlist in the army. He tries a couple of times but is rejected by recruiters; he’s also mocked and beaten up by rednecks (Joe Coffey and John Apicella) when he expresses a desire to serve. So he writes a letter about it to the newspaper, where it’s read by Madge, an aspiring female journalist (Brie Eley) lobbying for a byline which her boss Ira (Nick Few), also her boyfriend, hasn’t wanted to grant.
Madge, however, is persistent. She thinks an interview with Jimmy and his idea of the Double V might make a good story. After traveling to Wichita, she pitches Jimmy’s notion to Ira who, dubious at first, eventually gets behind it all the way and even faces down an intimidating visitor, FBI emissary William Taylor (Apicella). Taylor represents the point of view of J. Edgar Hoover and others in the White Establishment that agitating for racial equality during wartime is a dangerous distraction and needs to be brought to a halt.
Eglash-Kosoff’s well-intended but formulaic script is an educational vehicle that pits good guys with ideas about right and justice against Ku Klux Klansmen and other reactionary racists and the system they serve. The romantic subplot between Madge and Ira — which involves her effort to get him to marry her while also respecting her professional aspirations — is another worthy theme that bears the stamp of retro romance circa the 1940s or 50s. The lack of palpable chemistry between the two performers does little to boost the story.
Coffey’s portrayal of a white man who sneers at blacks’ aspirations for equality and treats Jimmy like dirt is intense and effective, and the scenes he appears in furnish a tension that fuels the story. After a tentative beginning, Few succeeds in his portrait of a serious-minded editor willing to push past his fear in the service of what he believes in.
As director, Arabian oversees what is in its own unflashy way a visually striking production. John Iacovelli’s busy set and Jared A. Sayeg’s shadowy lighting work together to evoke the modest environs of a small city newspaper of the 1940s. Video designer Fritz Davis’s projections at either end of the stage include the horrific images of lynched black men, providing the tragic historical context and raison d’etre for a play of laudable intent.
The Matrix Theatre, 7657 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; through Nov. 24. www.OnStage411.com/doublev or (323) 960-7776. Running time: approximately one hour and 40 minutes with an intermission.
