Review by Martha Heimberg

The title of Jonathan Norton’s latest play — Malcolm X and Redd Foxx Washing Dishes at Jimmy’s Chicken Shack in Harlem —  tells you pretty much who, where and what’s happening. The famous civil rights activist and stand-up comedian/TV sit-com star really did become friends working in the popular Harlem restaurant in 1943, according to Malcolm X’s autobiography. Malcolm “Detroit Red” Little (a sullen, lanky Edwin Green) is 18 and John “Foxy” Sanford (a grinning, chunky Trey Smith-Mills) is 20. They couldn’t be more different physically and temperamentally. But both men have survived — so far — the trauma of growing up poor and Black in a violently racist society. They both have some stories to tell, and therein lies the skill of the maker, who clearly loves his two fully realized characters.

Playwright/Interim Artistic Director Jonathan Norton opens up the Malcolm X paragraph to imagine, in 100 minutes of hilarious and wrenching dialogue, the impact the two young men had on each other’s lives while scrubbing dishes in a greasy kitchen where raw sewage regularly bubbles up through a drain on the dirty floor. Kimberly V. Powers’ designed the detailed set which turns the black box stage at the Wyly Studio Theater into Jimmy’s Chicken Shack basement, complete with a neon chicken sign and red-checked table cloths in the lobby before you even walk in the theater.

When the play starts, Malcolm has been demoted from waiter to washing dishes because management has learned about his previous criminal record as a drug dealer, pimp and burglar — and he’s starting to attract old customers. Foxy is living on the streets and can’t bathe regularly, and smells too rank to work up front. Malcolm naturally gets in a couple of digs about his workmate’s funky odor. 

Director Dexter J. Singleton paces the narrative of the growing friendship between the two men, as they talk about the problems they face and what they hope for in the future. Malcolm is trying to get past his old criminal record, and Foxy is knocking on doors and trying to get a stand-up comedy audition. The rhythm of humor and near violence is kept balanced throughout, as we’re jolted from laughing at one of Foxy’s old jokes to the sudden flash of a switchblade knife drawn from Malcolm’s pocket in a practiced move. We see both the possibilities of future greatness and personal insecurities of the men as their respect and trust for each other takes them past initial wariness. 

Claudia Brownlee’s period costumes for the men are just terrific. I loved the wild red and white striped suit and red hat Foxy sports in one scene. The hair styles are spot-on for the era. The men start out with straightened hair slicked back in waves. Foxy declares he’s going natural, and Malcolm says he’s going to shave his head as he moves toward embracing Black Nationalism.  Levi J. Wilkins’ lighting design is especially charming when flickering us through a character’s wish list in time: maybe good news will come Monday — maybe Tuesday, maybe not. Howard Patterson’s sound design weaves 40’s jukebox hits into the narrative, all delivered in a jazzy blues style you’d expect to hear at Jimmy’s.

Both actors have honed their expert performances over several workshops and a rolling world premiere in Arkansas and Pittsburg before the third leg at the Dallas Theater Center where you need to grab a ticket and see them do some thrilling Black magic.