Superb Acting, Stagecraft Mark ‘ALL THE NATALIE PORTMANS,’ a Thinking Cap Theatre Regional Premiere

You can always count on Thinking Cap Theatre (TCT) to discover that special gem of a new play (or unearth an ancient classic) and gift it to South Florida with a uniquely creative and entertaining production. This time it’s ALL THE NATALIE PORTMANS, a new play by C.A. Johnson that generated positive buzz at its Off-Broadway debut at MCC Theater in 2020, only to be abruptly shut down by the pandemic. But just like all those great Natalie Portman roles resurrected by Johnson’s protagonist for inspiration, you can’t keep a great play from finding its audience.

Or, for that matter, a great theater company. Thinking Cap is celebrating its 15th anniversary as a professional non-profit that “champions equality and theatrical experimentation” by creating “theater that explodes with thought” at its new home base at the Hollywood Central Performing Arts Center – a lovely, mid-size theatre run by the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood for the city. TCT’s artistic director Nicole Stodard says she’s proud to be bringing professional theater back to Hollywood after 25 years. (I can’t believe it’s been that long since Hollywood Playhouse’s final performance!) 

All The Natalie Portmans is a coming-of-age, and coming-out, story about a loving, inner-city Black family who struggle to survive after the unexpected death of the father, their primary breadwinner. The exhausted, hotel-cleaner mother turns to alcohol, her overburdened 18-year-old son to petty theft from his employer at the local bar to help make ends meet, and his bright 16-year-old sister to a fantasy world where she dreams of becoming a Hollywood scriptwriter for her movie idols – Natalie Portman, in particular. 

In describing her obsession with writing for the actress, or someone like her, Keyonna describes Portman as “Smart but sweet. And kinda sexy in an untouchable way. Like one part princess, one part stripper, one part Russian spy.” The siblings’ best friend (and coveted girlfriend by both) is Keyonna’s classmate who their mother calls her “third child” as Chantel practically lives in their apartment to escape her dangerous East-side neighborhood. (The play is set in Northwest Washington DC of 2009.)

If all this sounds too serious, trust me, it is … but it’s also not. Johnson’s latest play is loaded with humor, poignancy, and maybe, best of all, fantastical “Natalie Portman” appearances from her iconic early movies. Like nothing you’ll see anywhere else. What I especially love about this play’s casting is how its primary star – Breanna Michel as Keyonna with her visionary board dreams of Hollywood success – in some ways mirrors the actor’s personal journey and that of co-star, Whitley Armstrong, who plays her bestie Chantel. 

Both recent university graduates (Michel with a BFA in Music Theatre Performance from New World School of the Arts/UF, and Armstrong from NYU) have smaller-venue acting experience, but make their professional theater debut with this show. They were sooo… excellent, I’d never have known this was their first stab at the big leagues if I didn’t read it in the program. They definitely held their own against local, experienced favorites: Sheena O. Murray as mom Ovetta, Therese Adelina as Natalie Portman, and Logan Green as Samuel. 

We instantly get a feel for some of the characters’ personalities, and romantic tension, as Act I opens to Chantel yelling at Samuel, still in his undershorts, to next time check the expiration date on his condoms. Reiterating, “This is fun. That’s it.” She doesn’t want to be his girlfriend but “if you buy some more rubbers, I’ll stop by tomorrow.” Logan Green’s (as Sam) bulging eyes, alone, convey volumes about his inner conflicts and emotions, as does his nervous jerky pacing.  

Sam is also not happy to see his sister Keyonna arrive home early because he gets a robo-text every time she skips school. He persists in asking if she cut school because she’s being bullied. Annoyed, Key responds: “I’m a lesbian, not a leper. I skipped calculus ‘cause it’s boring, not because anyone’s bullying me.”

Keyonna carefully applies adhesive tape to another magazine clipping for her bedroom’s visionary collage wall showcasing Natalie Portman roles in movies like Black Swan, Garden State, Anywhere But Here, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Cold Mountain, Where the Heart Is, V for Vendetta, and The Professional. At least these are the ones were dressed-in-character Therese Adelina as Natalie Portman makes live appearances onstage as a supportive figment of Keyonna’s imagination – acting as her muse, friend, playmate and advisor. (There are some other movie star photos on her visionary board as well – like Winona Ryder, who “hasn’t done anything in a while” but for whom Key still holds out hope, and an older Julia Roberts.) 

We meet Adelina as Portman twirling on point while dressed in a tutu as the Black Swan ballerina, conversing like a gutsy 12-year-old in The Professional, or appearing as a Star Wars fighter while Keyonna joins her in a light-saber duel. These are but a few examples of Therese Adelina’s numerous striking scenes and unique acting challenges. I’m happy to report she nails all of her diverse Portman movie roles with aplomb! 

Key’s lovely fantasy world comes crashing down when her highly inebriated mother shows up after a three-day absence and trashes her vision board. Angry at once again being given the third degree by her practical daughter who insists on asking her for the rent (we eventually learn she’d gambled away her $800 paycheck at a drunken night out). Sheena O. Murray is absolutely riveting as the desperately unhappy alcoholic Ovetta, who can’t seem to get it together after her husband’s death and is crushed by her daughter’s lack of respect for her role as mom and (in name only) head of the household. 

Her incapacity to act responsibly despite loving her children almost destroys them all when her son is locked up in juvenile detention for three months (plus a year of probation) after a bar fight that might have killed a man, and her daughter skips school because she’s too tired and depressed after taking a minimum-wage night job to earn money for food and rent. Then their landlord evicts them nonetheless. For Ovetta, all this happening all at once is a final wake-up call to join AA, just in the nick time. Lucky for her (and those closest to her), she can also find support in her loving and forgiving family. 

So while the harsh and all-too-realistic human drama may disturb you, the fantasy movie episodes enthrall you, the play’s finale will ultimately leave you with a good feeling about family, friendship, and the power of redemption (and, in this case, imagination). While getting there, of course, is all the fun. 

Along with the playwright and exemplary cast, we can thank Thinking Cap Theatre’s powerful production team for getting us there … and keeping us consistently engaged. TCT’s visionary artistic director Nicole Stodard also served as the play’s director and costume (really impressive Natalie Portman role recreations!) and sound designer. She’s joined by stage manager and board operator Abbie Fricke, and the company’s managing director Bree-Anna Obst who served as lighting, sound and projection designer, all of which played major roles in Portman fantasy episodes. Company set and prop designer Alyiece Moretto-Watkins managed to make a sofa/bed serve multiple purposes and with set build assistants Tim Dickey, Aya Tracey, Om Jumarali and Alex Tarradell crafted an entire simple, yet functional, kitchen. Last, but far from least, I must applaud intimacy and movement director Nicole Perry for keeping so much heightened physical action real, and safe. 

Thinking Cap Theatre’s presentation of ALL THE NATALIE PORTMANS, a new play by C.A. Johnson, is playing through March 30 at the Hollywood Central Performing Arts Center, 1770 Monroe Street, Hollywood 33020. For tickets and more information about the company and upcoming programs, head to their website at thinkingcaptheatre.org. Or call 954-610-7263.

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