Fetch Clay, Make Man at Kirk Douglas Theatre

Fetch Clay, Make Man

Kirk Douglas Theatre
9820 Washington Blvd. Culver City

In the days leading up to one of Cassius Clay's most anticipated fights, the heavyweight boxing champion forms an unlikely friendship with the controversial Hollywood star Stepin Fetchit. With a rhythmic script by award-winning performer and playwright Will Power and direction by Emmy Award winner, Debbie Allen, Fetch Clay, Make Man explores the improbable bond that forms between two drastically different and influential cultural icons. One a vibrant and audacious youth, the other a resentful and almost forgotten relic-together as they fight to form their public personas and shape their legacies amidst the struggle of the Civil Rights Movement of the mid-1960s. This true story is as powerful and poetic as Clay himself while also humorous and irreverent like Fetchit's signature act. Finding commonality in contradiction, Fetch Clay, Make Man examines the true meaning of strength, resilience, and pride.

Thru - Jul 16, 2023

Show Type: Drama

Box Office: 213-628-2772

www.centertheatregroup.org

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Fetch Clay, Make Man Reviews

Average Rating based on 6 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

LA Splash - Highly Recommended

"...Skillful director Debbie Allen has helmed this production with a fascinating combination of reality, fantasy, and humor as the two men gradually become three-dimensional individuals who find something special in a friendship which defies the odds. Both Gibson, who has honed the fine art of nonverbal communication to a tee, and Fisher, who presents as a brash guy who may have more to him, do an excellent job of portraying their respective roles."

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- Elaine Mura

ArtsBeatLA - Highly Recommended

"...Director Allen gets rich, detailed work from her cast, creating compelling drama from what in lesser hands could just be a historical footnote. Sibyl Wickersheimer’s office set is a bit bland and empty, but Pablo N. Molina’s colorful projections mitigate that effect somewhat. Power’s play is interesting for several reasons, but mainly in how it demonstrates that everyone here is attempting to manipulate the others for their own ends, even if in well-intentioned ways – it’s a power struggle. His take on Fetchit is evenhanded, and the line he gives to the man is a good one: “I snuck through the back door so you could walk through the front.”

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- Terry Morgan

Entertainment Weekly - Recommended

"...This is no knock on the performances of the other three actors, all equally on par with the work of Fisher and Gibson. But this production lacks polish - beyond the strength of its performances, the directorial vision feels indistinct, the blocking messy. The set, designed by Sibyl Wickersheimer, is strangely organized, with the need for projection screens resulting in an off-kilter, bizarre playing space. That's not to say a stripped-down approach isn't effective (one need only have seen Broadway's A Doll's House revival with Jessica Chastain to understand the potential there), but here, it feels less intentional and more unfinished."

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- Maureen Lee Lenker

Stage Raw - Highly Recommended

"...Fetch Clay, Make Man doesn't deliver a narrative with a beginning, a clear middle and an end; it's more a series of scenes with a landscape of views on religion, race and the role of women at a pivotal moment in our history. But it works supremely well as such because the characters through which its perspectives are filtered are so richly and skillfully drawn."

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- Deborah Klugman

Its Not About Me - Highly Recommended

"...Having met and “interviewed” Muhammad Ali, I can indeed attest to that he was The Greatest of All Time, on multiple levels. So it’s always my pleasure to learn something new about the man. And this surprising true(ish) play, Fetch Clay, Make Man, at the Kirk Douglas, (one of the easiest theatres in town, where no one ever blocks your view,) was a revelation to me. [Note: My story of meeting Ali is at the end of this review, after the pertinent info on the play.]"

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- Karen Salkin

The Hollywood Times - Highly Recommended

"...As another example of an inspiring theatrical season in Los Angeles, Fetch Clay, Make Man at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City is a revelation. Not to be missed, the Center Theatre Group co-production with The SpringHill Company mines the genius of Will Power’s original play to reveal an unexpected twist of events. Although the play focuses on the connection between legendary boxer Muhammad Ali (a remarkable Ray Fisher) and Hollywood film star Stepin Fetchit (a precise Edwin Lee Gibson), the character that ultimately touches the audience the deepest proves surprising."

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- John Lavitt

Fetch Clay, Make Man at Kirk Douglas Theatre