'Bad Kreyòl' review — a thoughtful exploration of culture, ideology, and family
Read our review of Bad Kreyòl off Broadway, a new play by Dominique Morisseau, now running at the Pershing Square Signature Center through December 1.
Playwright Dominique Morisseau has an uncanny knack for taking familiar narratives, both within the context of Black American lives and more broadly in the world of theatre, and tweaking them just enough to unearth something more complex and fraught within her characters’ lives.
Her latest play, Bad Kreyòl, at first looks like a typical examination of a Black American reconnecting with her roots in Haiti. Even when Bad Kreyòl veers towards the obvious, Morriseau’s quick wit and seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of theatre find even more complicated emotional branches to explore.
For many, mixed Creole visitor and Haitian American Simone’s (Kelly McCreary) argument of living between two worlds would be a conclusion, sentimentally wrought, and an end in itself. But the push and pull of responsibility and a tinted worldview colored by growing up in America (with its allegedly liberal, democratic values) is the beginning. Between trying (sort of) to foster a relationship with her Haitian cousin Gigi (an exemplary Pascale Armand) while also supporting Pita (a delightful Jude Tibeau), Gigi’s queer friend and employee, Bad Kreyól interrogates a mythology of culture clash and what the shadows of other people’s sense of freedom really provides.
As boutique owner Gigi, Armand is full-throated, a puma at once protective and yet rooted in her experience and thus way of navigating the world. She and Pita are aware of the ways in which American meddling and bravado precedes itself, so Simone’s good impulses come as little surprise. But what good is, what impact it can have, and to what extent it’s actually camouflaged exploitation lie at the heart of Morriseau’s study.
Thoughtfully prodding at the limitations of inspirational American savior narratives while validating her characters’ political, humanitarian, and interpersonal ambitions, Morriseau explores the complexities of our responsibilities to one another in grand fashion.
Bad Kreyòl summary
Simone hasn’t visited Haiti since she was a child, and after the death of their grandmother, returns to do NGO work and connect with her cousin Gigi. She also meets Pita, Gigi’s assistant, and Lovelie, a pillow maker who suffers harassment. Their circumstances spark Simone’s desire to do something positive for her ancestral home, but she meets raised eyebrows from Gigi and an uncertainty about her true purpose for going to Haiti.
What to expect at Bad Kreyòl
Set against a coral blue backdrop that showcases the rolling vistas of houses, Bad Kreyòl’s production design (sets are by Jason Sherwood) is clever, colorful, and thoughtful. Much of it is staged in Gigi’s shop, which rotates to reveal other spaces for other interior and exterior scenes. But Alan C. Edwards's lighting in particular bathes the show in deep and saturated blue and purple, with Curtis Craig and Jimmy Keys's sound design carefully recreating the idle hum of buzzing insects and the whooshing of cars closer to the city.
What audiences are saying about Bad Kreyòl
Bad Kreyòl has received acclaim on the audience review aggregator Show-Score, with an 83% approval rating as of publication.
“Well-conceived & well-acted. Again, brava to Mme Morisseau.” - Show-Score user Elisa 9119 “Dominque Morisseau has woven a beautiful story with universal love via the complexities of family, culture & authenticity thru 5 slices of Haitian life. Brava!” - Show-Score user DOUG Rob NYC “The best thing about this show is its colorful revolving staging and clothing. The rest of it, not that great. There is something very shallow and simple about these characters, that feels very stereotypical as their dialog gets more preachy the more the play advances. The story feels forced and much of the humor is trying too hard to please.” - Show-Score user GreatAvi
Read more audience reviews of Bad Kreyòl on Show-Score.
Who should see Bad Kreyòl
- Fans of Dominique Morriseau’s work should definitely check out her new work and the way she plays with how self conceived identities shape our loyalties and sense of obligation.
- Those looking for a perfect performance should come to see Pascale Armand as Gigi, whose embodiment is legible in every gesture, whose desire to connect reads clearly across her face, and whose confusion at how to handle this relationship blooms in every line.
- Those curious about the lives of LGBTQ people in Haiti will find much to think about in terms of not only where it is and is not safe to be queer, but how organizations provide affinity spaces for the unprotected.
Learn more about Bad Kreyòl
Bad Kreyòl showcases a kind of a love triangle between culture, ideology, and family. Everyone thinks they’re doing good, but the characters encounter friction that challenges their notions of goodness. Morisseau cements herself as a playwright as incisive and curious as she is incredibly entertaining.
Originally published on