OnWord Theatre Closes Season with the One-Woman Play: “Beauty’s Daughter” 

An 80-minute Intimate Experience

The new kid on the block, OnWord, is taking over Diversionary’s Black Box space with another West Coast premiere: Beauty’s Daughter by Obie award winner Dael Orlandersmith, directed by Danielle Bunch and starring Marti Gobel, who is also coming back to the role after almost a decade.

Diane (Gobel) is a poet from Harlem. Her mother, Beauty, is a former dancer turned alcoholic with a hefty resentment towards her daughter and is vocal about it. 

Danielle Bunch’s direction has the performance start softly and slowly, with a recorded spoken-word track in the background directed by Dana King. Diane begins contouring the plot, then tightens the pace by personifying a cast of characters who have made different impressions throughout her life. “Papo,” a Puerto Rican high school friend, “Louie”, a blind, former musician and homeless drug addict, “Mary,” her upstairs neighbor and loving mother figure, “Anthony”, an Italian-American player that she meets during an event, and, of course, her mother “Beauty”. Through mannerisms and wardrobe changes, Marti takes the audience along Diane’s journey. The experience feels close and intimate; we, the audience, are the ones listening to Anthony’s shenanigans or taking Beauty’s outbursts. I could also feel Marti coming back to this role after 10 years, as her strong interpretive skills have range, giving each of these characters a voice, a tone, a personality, and an accent. From Newyorican to Irish. Young to seasoned. Sober to not. The tracks via Martilia Marechal’s sound design let the characters marinate while the room catches on. The reactions with cackles, laughs, and gasps round out the experience.

The set design reminded me of the “4×4” TJ Night Contemporary Dance contest, where dancers cannot move out of the four-by-four platform. In ‘Beauty, there is a carpet kind of like the platform, accesorized with books, a chair, and a table, a box with memorabilia, and a rack in the corner where each character’s attire lives. Like a smooth choreography, Marti moves around the platform. 

Playwrights often capture life experiences in their work. Dael Orlandersmith includes autobiographical elements in this play, which are perceivable. What I did not see coming and appreciated was a plot twist that happens towards the second half, with a sort of resolution for everybody. No spoilers, but the end was a chef’s kiss.

Beauty’s Daughter is currently playing until November 30. It is open seating, and it gets pretty toasty in there, so I recommend layering up to de-layer and stay cool during the performance. 

A Pay-What-You-Can performance will take place on Friday, November 28. 

Members of Tribal Nations are granted complimentary entry upon presentation of valid identification at the event.