Review: The Cotton Club Meets the Bard in Signature’s Play On!

Two masters preside over Signature Theatre’s Play On!—William Shakespeare and Duke Ellington—and under the inspired guidance of director Lili-Anne Brown, their worlds blend in an upbeat, syncopated embrace.

In Play On!, which premiered in 1996, Sheldon Epps and Cheryl L. West adapted the Bard’s Twelfth Night and paired it with a revue of Ellington gems. Brown leans into the rhythms of both the play and the music in creating a jubilant night of song and comedy that feels steeped in history and freshly alive.

The story takes its cue from the opening line of Shakespeare’s popular comedy: “If music be the food of love, play on.” The musical follows aspiring songwriter Vy, who arrives in swinging 1940s Harlem with a dream of being a songwriter. However, she quickly discovers the doors of opportunity are closed to women, so she disguises herself as a man, Vy-Man, to pitch her songs to Harlem’s hottest composer, the Duke. When her tunes attract the attention of the Cotton Club’s star attraction Lady Liv, the object of the Duke’s affection, Vy-Man is swept up in a swinging tempest of love, mistaken identity, and jazz.

As Vy, Jalisa Williams is truly radiant. Her sly humor and rich voice carry Ellington standards like “I Didn’t Know About You” with smoky warmth, while her comic timing is sharp enough to win laughs without tipping into farce. Greg Watkins projects plenty of charisma as Duke, the composer at the heart of Harlem’s nightlife, but he also hints at a touch of vulnerability silencing the room with his haunting “I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart.”

Awa Sal Secka is spot-on as the over-the-top diva, Lady Liv, whose commanding presence is matched by a powerhouse voice. She dazzles in her duet with Williams on “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” and then transforms the mood entirely, bringing the house to a hush with “I Ain’t Got Nothing but the Blues.”

The production’s most flamboyant turn comes from Wesley J. Barnes, who is a hoot as Jester, the show’s riff on Twelfth Night’s Feste, who moves between the story’s romantic entanglements with a knowing grin and a sly aside. Barnes showcases his fierce tap-dancing skills throughout as well as his gift for comedy. One of the show’s most delightful moments comes in the duet between Barnes’s Jester and Derrick D. Truby Jr.’s Sweets on “Rocks in My Bed,” delivered with raw intensity and playful audience interaction.

Chuckie Benson, as the authoritative yet principled Rev, nearly steals the show when his stiff, buttoned-up demeanor melts into a swinging, scatting cool cat on “I’m Beginning to See the Light”—his character tricked into shedding his dignity in a hilarious attempt to woo Lady Liv.

Costume designer Samantha C. Jones goes all-out for his duds, and it’s just one of her many winning creations. Jones’s costumes evoke Harlem’s golden age with flair, from the sleek sophistication of Duke’s suits to Lady Liv’s lavish gowns and the ensemble’s bursts of vibrant color—all stylishly authentic without tipping into caricature.

Music director Jermaine Hill conducts an impeccable band that would have made Ellington proud. Stationed on the upper-right balcony, the orchestra floods the room with brass and swing, practically daring the audience to clap along in the high-energy numbers.

The entire design team, led by scenic designer Dan Conway, captures the glamour of Harlem’s golden age perfectly as Signature’s MAX theater is transformed into a dazzling homage to Harlem’s Cotton Club at the height of Duke Ellington’s reign. The cabaret-style seating, with shaded lamps glowing against white tablecloths, draws the audience into the world upon entering the theater and gives the room the intimacy of a nightclub, an effective choice for this show.

Choreographer Breon Arzell works his ensemble hard, and they are up for the challenge. The dance numbers are fun and full of big energy with Barnes and a dynamic Alana S. Thomas leading the way.

One odd choice had some ensemble members holding instruments during a brass-heavy number without actually playing, only briefly mimicking the action at the piece’s conclusion, but that’s a small flaw.

It’s a shame that Play On! is not produced more. Signature’s revival moves with the slick polish of a Cotton Club floor show yet still lets Shakespeare’s wordplay breathe and never loses the throughline of mistaken identities and romantic entanglements.