REVIEW: Tempestuous Elements (Arena Stage)

Anna Julia Cooper is one of the pre-eminent Black Feminists in American history. Born into bondage in North Carolina, she was afforded a world-class education during Reconstruction, culminating in her receiving a Ph.D from the University of Paris - making her only the fourth African-American woman ever to receive one at all. She ultimately ended up here in the District, in academic service at the M Street School (the building of which still exists today, near New Jersey / New York Avenues NW). Kia Corthron’s world premiere play Tempestuous Elements seeks to put a spotlight on Mrs. Cooper during her tenure there, particularly in the twilight of her role as its principal. As part of its “Power Play” series, Arena Stage looks to focus on a particularly local flavor of unheard Black stories as we wrap up Black History Month.

Book

Anna is introduced as the sharp, headstrong principal of the M Street High School; she’s been there more than two decades and is a vocal member of the Colored Women Society alongside other legends such as Ida B. Wells and Mary Church Terrell. Her approach to education seeks to uplift Black students to the levels of prestige seen by White students who attend the likes of Harvard and Yale; however, this results in conflict with others who wish to reduce Black education to mere vocational studies. Corthron’s book frames Cooper as an eclectic, unabashed believer in human potential, but surrounds her with one-dimensional renditions of those who served around her in reality. The successes of the play are most prevalent in Cooper’s one-on-one spats with her challengers, where she is so overpowered in these battle of wits it’s practically unfair. This is especially the case as the arguments against her as her status in DC freefalls approach nonsensical, even from contemporary Black educators. The powers opposing her are not afforded the full rendering that make it apparent how widespread these beliefs just were, so often it can feel that the struggles she has to fight through are hollow, like trying to throw a punch in a dream. What I respect the most about the piece is Corthron’s introduction to Anna Cooper as a historical figure; I would have never known about, nor sought more information on, her if not for her lively characterization of the educator. 4/10

Acting

I had great hopes for this cast; Renea S. Brown and Ro Boddie were recently hitting 3s in The Mountaintop in Bethesda, and Joel Ashur was livening up the stage in Mosaic’s Confederates. Yet, in junction with the book, most are reduced to paper-thin dialogue machines that serve only to bounce light back towards Gina Daniels’ admittedly piquant turn as Anna Cooper. Deft delivery defines this performance; Daniels has clear control of her role and demands the respect her character cannot seem to acquire, through no fault of her own. The prolific actress has been around DC stages before, but she’s one I wish we saw more of. 5/10

Production

Director and DC theatre favorite Psalmayene 24 returns to Arena Stage for this production. His ability to attach a modern, unified vision to basically any book is unmatched, affirming the value he gives to the shows in our city. He takes advantage of the Fichandler rather well by emphasizing its verticality; Tony Cisek’s dangling, fluorescent blackboards radiate outward from centerstage, as if Cooper herself alights an explosion of academic shrapnel, tag-teaming with William K. D’Eugenio’s neon margins to create visually striking transitions. 7/10

Viz

I admire Arena’s painterly looks for their marketing approaches. Elements sells the show decently, focusing on a wry, digitally painted portrait of Cooper overlaid on a borderline celestial backdrop to represent a blackboard (though this callout may be overlooked). This joins well with its busy pre-show staging of the blackboards as mentioned earlier, clearly indicating a theme of education. 5/10

Verdict

Tempestuous Elements marks a fascinating introduction into the life of local hero educator Anna Julia Cooper, but stops short of a compelling biography.

21/40