Two young Dominican American professionals meet cute at a nightclub, fall in love, get married, begin to plan for a family. She is a talented young lawyer, a rising star in the local prosecutor’s office. He is truly a child of the ‘hood, a mechanic with entrepreneurial talent, who has created a growing business with multiple employees. They are smart, well-read and appealing. Their love is strong, and their marriage promising. But they experience many pressures: from family, from their work, and from the societal conditions that can be particularly challenging if you are young, Black and Latinx while trying to make it in America.
It is a simple conflict: Young love is hard. Will they make it? It is a story we’ve heard a thousand times in a thousand variations. Done badly, it can easily sink to the level of mediocre television: Bland, obvious, and uninspiring. Done well, it never fails to engage and can rise to the level of great theatrical art, over and over again, whenever the tale is told. It can be tragic (“Romeo and Juliet”), hilarious (Beatrice and Benedick), silly (“Barefoot in the Park”), or many other variations.
In Guadalís Del Carmen’s new play (making its West coast premiere after only one previous production) it is done extremely well. What makes this play so effective is the wonderfully rich characterizations of the young couple. Atlhough the social context of their membership in an arguably oppressed community is at the forefront of their story, the specificity of their experience is striking. When they talk about Johair’s ambivalent and angry feelings as she persecutes a rape case at work or Manuel’s struggles to supervise talented but undisciplined young mechanics who lack a work ethic, it is both social commentary and profoundly personal. This is their life. Their Black identity, their economic struggle, the pressures on Manuel due to his mother’s failing health, their discussions of Audre Lourde’s books, their desire for a family, everything is grist for the mill. Rarely are characters presented on stage with such a rich tapestry of detail and complexity. It is easy to care deeply about Manuel and Johaira.
What I found really striking about this play is its persuasive demonstration that “the personal is political.” Nothing about Manuel and Johair can be separated from their historical moment in America. Their struggles, deeply intimate and truly their own, are nevertheless the stuggles of their community, of their ancestry, of their country. This is not a point to be argued. It is simply an obvious fact of their lives. Caring about them is to care about this context. There is no way around it.
One might say that they are trying to dance gracefully to music that is deep and complex and unpredictable. This metaphor of the dance is made explicit in an opening monologue where Manuel talks about the wonders of Bachata (Dominican dance music) and their first meeting at a dance club. Like bees and honey, the dance can sting and yet be sweeter than sweet.
A word about the actors: they soar. Two handed plays are notoriously difficult, but Jorge Lendeborg Jr. and Katherine George make it look easy. I fell in love with both of them.
I loved “Bees & Honey.” I loved meeting this remarkable couple and sharing in their life.
Guadalís del Carmen is an exceptionally gifted playwright. No doubt, her star will shine brightly for years to come.
“Bees & Honey” runs at Marin Theatre Company through March 10. For further information, click here.
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Rating: **** (For an explanation of Theatrestorm’s rating scale, click here.)
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“Bees & Honey” by Guadalís del Carmen. Directed by Karina Gutiérrez. Scenic Design: Carlos Antonio Aceves. Costume Design: Alice Ruiz. Lighting Design: Kate Boyd. Sound Design: Michael Kelly. Intimacy Coordinator: Jeunée Simon. Fight Choreographer: Kristen Matia. Dance Consultant: Mark Ellis.
Cast:
Manuel: Jorge Lendeborg. Johaira: Katherine George.
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