Although Safe House is the title of Keith Josef Adkins’ world premiere play at the Cincinnati Playhouse (the 71st work to debut there), the primitive but neat cabin inhabited by the Pedigrews, a free family of color in 1843 Kentucky, is a dangerous place. A pair of brothers have diametrically opposed views of how to live life, their aunt has her own agenda, and the racist society surrounding them — while affording them some freedom by virtue of their birth — is every ready to take that liberty away for the slightest infraction.
In that era, children born of the union of a white woman and a man of color were deemed free. They could own land, have a home and a profession. But they had to carry papers documenting their lineage or risk being dragged off as slaves. And they had to toe the line with good behavior. The slightest infraction could jeopardize their freedom.
The sibling rivalry between ambitious but conservative Addison (LeRoy McClain) and fiery, impatient Frank (Shane Taylor) is a circumstance fraught with peril. Addison hopes to expand his shoemaking business by establishing a shop in their home; Frank yearns to be more truly free and is willing to harbor runaway slaves. They have each focused their romantic intentions on Clarissa (Deonna Bouye); Addison’s desire is to perpetuate the family’s ancestry of freedom, while Frank is simply romantic.
Living with them, Aunt Dorcas (Stephanie Berry) is quietly known for helping people escape to Liberia. Her life is compounded by Bracken (Wilbur Edwin Henry), a white deputy who’s commissioned to carry out the law, but who has affection for Dorcas from childhood. Into the midst of this powder keg comes Roxie (Shannon Dorsey), running from a horrible state of enslavement.
Adkins based Safe House on his own family’s history, although this is not their story, more their circumstances. He offers insights into the complex society of early America and the corrosive impact of slavery. Timothy Douglas’s clean, straightforward direction keeps the story’s momentum rolling, although the show’s length (more than two-and-a-half hours) is a challenge. All the characters are sharply drawn, but the story’s complexity needs to be focused. Nevertheless, this is a show for history buffs and those who love unpredictable drama.
SAFE HOUSE, presented by the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, continues through Nov. 15.
This article appears in Oct 29 – Nov 4, 2014.
