The Story literally starts with a bang. Several bangs, in fact. A white woman named Jessica is giving a statement to a detective about the murder of her husband. As she tells the tale, it's re-enacted almost like a dream. They're in their car, lost in a bad part of town. Suddenly, her husband shudders as three bullets strike him in the chest. She says the killer is a black man. Is her story true? If this were a TV show, it would be either a "true crime" movie of the week or a fictional who-dunnit. But this is a play at the Public Theater so you can count on a sharp left turn -- with the emphasis on left.

As Tracey Scott Wilson's play unfolds, it becomes less about the murder and more about[...]