If you’ve ever swooned while hearing Nat King Cole’s “Mona Lisa” or “Unforgettable,” you won’t want to miss “I Wish You Love,” a tribute to Cole running from June 11 to 19 at the Kennedy Center. Written by Dominic Taylor and directed by Lou Bellamy, “I Wish You Love” had its world premiere at the Penumbra Theatre in Saint Paul, Minn. From 1956 to 1957, Cole had a show on NBC. “The play primarily examines that period, during segments of the show and rehearsal,” Bellamy said in a recent interview. “We use 20 of Cole’s most famous songs.”
But “I Wish You Love” isn’t just a sentimental musical medley. Its primary focus is on the 1960s in order to highlight what was happening politically and culturally in the nation: President Eisenhower had the Civil Rights Act on his desk; Althea Gibson had won Wimbledon; nine children were about to integrate Little Rock Central High School.
| Onstage |
| ‘I Wish You Love’ |
| Where: The Kennedy Center, 7200 F St. NW |
| When: Saturday to June 19 |
| Info: $34 to $40; 202-467-4600 |
“As the show progresses, we break for commercials and newscasts,” Bellamy explained. “During that time, you’re transported to the 1950s with news footage of the civil rights movement. And you can see that the commercials are constructing an American narrative that doesn’t include everybody.”
One crucial element is the view of the role of television in the 1960s. Bellamy uses cameras and five TV screens. “They become a critique of what that medium allows you to see and not see,” he explained. The presence of cameras also emphasizes the effect of Cole’s personality on television.
“Despite Nat’s suave, smooth, nonthreatening demeanor, his presence was transgressive, in the sense that he was there, he was a man, he was speaking from his heart,” Bellamy said. “This was something that America hadn’t seen. His very presence was a transgression.
“One of the realizations that Nat Cole comes to during the course of this play is that his wealth and celebrity have not separated him from the plight of other African-Americans. Cole earned the life of the wealthy but he was still vulnerable to racism. He was fighting the same sort of battles on television that the civil rights movement was fighting in society. And his ballads are juxtaposed with what was going on in America at large.”
Cole is played by Dennis W. Spears, who calls up memories of Cole’s extraordinarily mellow voice. “We don’t try to mimic Nat King Cole,” said Bellamy, “but Dennis is so much that character. It’s arresting.” The cast also includes Kevin D. West, Eric Berryman and Michael Tezla.
“I Wish You Love” is being presented by the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays.
