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Try On Dramashop's The Brothers Size For Size
Exploring the idiosyncrasies of sibling dynamics on stage
August 30, 2023 at 1:00 PM
Contributed
The Brothers Size, coming to Dramashop in September, shows the complicated dynamics in the relationship between two brothers. The four-person cast features Nicholas Gore, Aaron Holman, Isaiah Aldridge, and Sakhari Thomas.
PREMIERING FRIDAY, SEPT. 15
If you've ever had a brother — or been a brother — you know the relationship dynamic is rarely simple and is indeed, very often charged beneath the surface, no matter what it looks like to outsiders.
In his play The Brothers Size, playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney explores these substantial bonds of brotherhood: what it means to be a brother and what it means to be brothered. Erie's own Dramashop is bringing this bit of theater to the stage, with regular Friday and Saturday night performances beginning Sept. 15 (including a season opening reception the same night) and ending Sept. 30, with a special discount matinee on Sunday, Oct. 1.
The play reads straightforward enough. Younger brother Oshooshi Size is fresh out of prison, lost, not at all sure what to do with his life — but hopeful for the future. His older brother, Ogun Size, is the steadier of the two — he owns a mechanic shop and he gives Oshooshi a job there, so the younger man can get his bearings, find his footing, and get used to life beyond prison walls.
When Oshooshi's friend Elegba, whom he met in prison, shows up, he draws Oshooshi into a world of trouble, seemingly leading him back to the cells where they met. And naturally, Oshooshi runs straight to his brother for help.
Set in the Louisiana Bayou, the play draws on Yoruba culture — including dance, music, and cosmology — while expressing the very real, very human need for connection and freedom. Featuring a four-person cast of Nicholas Gore as Ogun, Aaron Holman as Oshooshi, Isaiah Aldridge as Elegba and Sakhari Thomas as the Narrator (all of whom except for Holman are making their Dramashop debut), Dramashop's production of The Brothers Size is directed by Andrew Lyons, assistant directed by Zachery Hoffman, and choreographed by Allex Coles.
Fridays and Saturdays through Sept. 30 at 7:30 p.m. // 1001 State St., Ste 210 // $15-$25 // For tickets and info: dramashop.org