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Terrence Howard plays ambiguously gay Brick in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"
On February 12th, previews began at the Broadhurst Theatre in New York for a new, all-black production of Tennessee Williams’ 1955 play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that will open on March 6th. The cast includes James Earl Jones as Big Daddy, The Cosby Show’s Phylicia Rashad as Big Mama, Dreamgirls star Anika Noni Rose as Maggie the Cat (a role made famous by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1958 film of the play), and Oscar nominee and Hustle & Flow star Terrence Howard as Brick (a role played by Paul Newman in the film).
The casting of Howard in the role is interesting, since Brick’s sexuality in the play (and even in the censored film) could be considered somewhat ambiguous. In mourning for his closeted homosexual best friend, Skipper, who has recently committed suicide, Brick is refusing to sleep with his wife, Maggie. Maggie in turn is frustrated, both by her desire for her husband, and by his refusal to give her children and therefore make them more likely to be left a fortune in Big Daddy’s will. Last year, Howard made headlines in the gay press when he talked about homophobia in hip-hop and his own ambiguous attitude towards homosexuality, saying:
"Do I agree with homosexuality? No, I'm a Bible-based young man. But I know the Bible also speaks about homosexuality with liars, adulterers, thieves. I've lied, I've cheated on my wife, I've stolen. So how can I judge somebody for something that's mentioned in the same exact scripture? I believe we're all sinners. We're all trying to make it but our hip-hop community are a bunch of hypocrites right now." Whether Howard isn’t aware of the homosexual overtones in Williams’ play, or has decided he doesn’t care, isn’t clear. An brief article in the new Vanity Fair Hollywood Issue, out now, quotes him as saying that it’s a “challenge” to play Brick, because Brick has a lot of “issues” - but neither Howard nor the article itself explicitly mentions the play’s homoerotic themes.
Here’s hoping that Howard can help to lessen the taboo for African-American actors playing queer or ambiguous roles – and maybe question his own attitude towards homosexuality in the meantime. Submitted by on Thu, 2008-02-21 14:29. |
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I had the privelege of
I had the privelege of seeing this show last weekend, and I have to say, it was awesome.
Terence Howard is an actor, first and foremost, and one would hope that he wouldn't find issue playing a man struggling with his sexuality any more difficult than playing any other role that is different from himself. Isn't that what acting is supposed to be about?
Regardless, he plays Brick very well. He gives the character a sense of fatigue and deep sadness that is palpable. His own self-loathing is challenged when he finally confronts his domineering father about his feelings for Skipper and finds acceptance, love and tolerance instead of the disgust and loathing he was expecting. There's a calmness that follows this discussion as Brick finally realizes (at least in my interpretation) that his feelings for Skipper aren't "dirty" as he expected, but just another way of loving someone.
That said, the REAL star of the show is Anika Noni Rose as Maggie. She recites a nearly uninterrupted 40 minute monologue at the start of the show without missing a beat and really captured the role of a sexually frustrated, multi-facted woman. Her love for Brick, while real, is also tied into his social standing. She's the first to acknowledge Brick's feelings for Skipper, and basically tells him she understands them, she just wants him to be honest. You get the sense that she doesn't really care WHAT Brick does as long as he stays married to her and gives her a child. That's not how Elizabeth Taylor played the role in the movie, so it's more true to Tennessee Williams' vision of the story.
Phylicia Rashad was awesome as Big Momma, although it was heartbreaking to see the contempt that Big Daddy showed for her throughout the show. The audience laughed a number of times during some really painful scenes, so I'm not sure if director Debbie Allen deliberately asked the actors to tone down the pain Big Momma was feeling or if it just wasn't delivered with the kind of timing necessary to show the depth of feeling.
The weakest link in the cast, surprisingly, was James Earl Jones as Big Daddy. He stumbled through a number of his lines, or circled back and repeated entire phrases when he realized he had missed something. My other half indicated that he had a hard time understanding him at several points as well.
I'd thoroughly recommend seeing this show. It's a truly topical story, and seeing it through the lens of a Southern black family as opposed to a Southern white family was refreshingly different.
with friends like Howard...
So bible-thumper Terrence Howard isn't going to judge us for the sin of being gay because he admits to having himself committed the sins of lying, infidelity and stealing. Ah shucks, how kind of him.
Well thanks, but no thanks Terrence. By not questioning the archaic mumbo jumbo that equates sexual orientation with those other negative behaviours you're perpetuating prejudice and blind hatred.
With friends like him, who needs enemies. But watch, now he'll probably get some kind of humanitarian award?!?