'Black Angels would soar on Broadway'

FRIDAY, FEB 1: When he is not sharing screen time with his friend Tyler Perry, actor Lamman Rucker is championing the efforts of black men the world over.

Rucker, who is perhaps best known for appearing alongside Perry on the TBS sitcom and subsequent film Meet The Browns, was one of a team of men who launched the theatre company Black Gents of Hollywood in 2007. The company is bringing its successful off-Broadway production of Layon Gray’s Black Angels Over Tuskagee, charting the heroic efforts of a group of African-American military airmen who fought in World War II. It will be performed at the Earl Cameron Theatre at City Hall next week as part of the Bermuda Festival of the Performing Arts.

Rucker has starred in a few of Tyler Perry’s productions including the film version of Why Did I Get Married? alongside Perry, Janet Jackson and Jill Scott.

He admits that his work with Perry has put him in good stead in the acting business. 

Opportunity

He told the Bermuda Sun: “It has been a lot of fun and a fortunate opportunity to work with him, I owe him a lot. It has definitely helped me.”

The role he will be playing in Black Angels is that of former boxer, come philosophical thinker Elijah Sams.

Written by co-Black Gents founder Layon Gray, this uplifting tale is based on real events. It follows the six black men who became pilots in the United States Army Air Forces. Jim Crow challenges their intelligence, patriotism, brotherhood and their shared vision of an equal society. 

Speaking of the play, Rucker said: “It is very exciting and encouraging for me that we get to channel these great ancestors of ours and get to share this incredible story about American achievement. In particular, it illuminates how incredible we are as black people — and one of the many the significant contributions we have made to the freedom and liberation of America and other cultures as well. I am very proud of the Tuskagee airmen. Some people don’t even know the history and that is really scary.”

The play is said to transcend the newspaper headlines and look deep into the characters of the men and the special bond they shared in the face of adversity.

Rucker describes his character as a thoughtful man who all the others hold great respect for.

“My character has a very interesting background, he is somewhat of a surprise. He used to be the heavy weight-champ of the world and then you find out that he is actually a very gently guy — sensitive and compassionate. He has a very strong compassion for his fellow man and in particular other men of colour.

“He is the opposite of the stereotypical type of the brute boxer. He felt that he was being violent towards another black man for the amusement of white people and that did not sit well with him. 

“He is the philosopher of the group — he is the one that is very well read, he is very well informed. A lot of the current events that are going on in the world that the other guys are not aware of, he has been aware of for years. He is the glue, the leader, the quarterback — he emerges as one of the captains of that unit. Everyone has leadership capacities in their own way but he is at the front of the line.”

The character is also sensitive to the racial dynamics of his career option.

Rucker added: “Access to education for black men was very limited but what makes these guys so exceptional is that they come from a variety of different backgrounds regarding to how privileged or how downtrodden they are.

“You come to see how we are the cream of the crop — you see how special they are.”

The show began in LA in 2008 before moving to the Actors’ Temple Theatre in New York. Black Angels is approaching its fourth season off Broadway but Rusker believes the play deserves a lot more exposure.

“We are developing some ideas for television on film and we are in the process of a campaign to get it on to Broadway — I think it would shine and soar.

“We are finishing up our third year and that is just in New York — we have been doing this play since 2008. We don’t plan on shutting the doors any time soon.

“It is encouraging and frustrating — we know and believe we should and could be thriving on a whole other level. You have got to keep on fighting and wait your turn and keep building the brand and the buzz and perfecting what you do. We could easily do it on Broadway if we had the resources it would take the quality of the show to another level.”

Layon Gray’s Black Angels Over Tuskagee is showing at The Earl Cameron Theatre at City Hall on February 5 & 6. Tickets are $65 for adults, $25 for students ad are available from www.bdatix.bm.