The Kennedy Center’s “Thurgood,” a one-man show about the life of Thurgood Marshall, is a piece of extraordinary stealth theater. With no special effects, an uncomplicated set and only one actor, it seems to be telling the simple story of the great-grandson of a slave who began with little and achieved a lot. In fact, “Thurgood” tells the explosive story of the waking-up of America, as it moved from being a country where post-Reconstruction laws still held sway to being a socially conscious nation, at the same time showing how one man helped pave the way for the civil rights movement.
If you go
“Thurgood”
Where: Eisenhower Theatre, Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW
When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday; 1:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; through June 20
Info: $25 to $90; 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org
There are two primary reasons for the success of “Thurgood.” The first is the power and dignity of Laurence Fishburne in the title role. As Marshall, Fishburne’s presence is at once commanding and relaxed. He begins talking about his ancestors — remembered for their stubbornness and their distinctive names — and immediately establishes a chatty rapport with the audience. Throughout, Marshall is depicted as a man of feeling and of controlled, intelligent defiance. Fishburne’s Thurgood is friendly and funny, charming his listeners with his down-home style. The second reason for the success of this production is its subtly crafted script by George Stevens Jr. Without once letting the theater sound like a law school classroom, Stevens refers to important judicial landmarks that existed when Marshall was born and the cases that Marshall himself participated in, making it clear how crucial Marshall’s presence was to the development of racial integration.
As the script moves through Marshall’s early years, Stevens also provides information about Thurgood’s family and friends: the brother who taught him to argue and debate; the father who instilled in him the importance of the Constitution; Langston Hughes. Stevens’ dual focus on Marshall’s own life and on the social history of the times suggests that Marshall had twin, inseparable passions. The first involved primarily personal reasons, the second more abstract, intellectual reasons for achieving justice.
Directed by Leonard Foglia, the action moves smoothly around Allen Moyer’s set, which includes an imposing rectangular wooden desk with four chairs. Above the desk hangs a huge American flag, painted in thick white paint. From time to time, Elaine J. McCarthy’s projection design effectively covers the flag with scenes from Baltimore in the early 20th century, the movie theater where as a young man Marshall was made to enter through a rear door, a town in South Carolina where he went to defend civil rights.
Marshall lived a long and full life. When he died in 1993, Marshall had served as the first African American solicitor general and the first African-American Supreme Court justice. Although this production does not pretend to be an exhaustive biography, given the sensitivity, humor and grace with which Fishburne performs it, “Thurgood” is a compelling tribute to one of the most brilliant and influential men in 20th century American history.
