His and Hawkins’ chemistry as adult brothers is felt from the moment they both take the stage, to the haunting final scene. His syrupy-smooth delivery of such sharp and biting dialogue lends a softness to Lincoln, who so often likes to portray himself as hard. As the cocky and entitled, yet deeply wounded younger brother, Lincoln, Mateen uses his ineffable charm to make such a difficult character personable. Where Hawkins brings the emotional gravity of Lori-Parks’ work, Mateen brings the more comedic moments. One of my favorite moments of his performance in Act One includes a beautiful moment where Hawkins serenades the crowd with an offhand blues song. He reaches depths and sadness within that character that pin the audience to their seat, breathless and emotional. I found myself both completely entranced by him, believing him to be Lincoln and marveling at the fact that I was witnessing an actor completely in his element. Hawkins’ performance is absolutely electric. The brothers get into discussions about their lives, childhood, financial struggles, womanly woes, and sibling rivalry in moments that are equally hilarious, poignant, and sometimes devastating. He’s shortly joined by Lincoln played by Tony-nominee Corey Hawkins ( Straight Outta Compton, In the Heights, 24: Legacy) dressed as, you guessed it, Abraham Lincoln. The show begins with Booth, played by Emmy-winner Yahya Abdul Mateen II ( Watchmen, Candyman, The Matrix: Resurrections) alone in the apartment pretending to hustle people at three-card monte.

The songs set the perfect stage (pun intended) for the magic that ensues for the following two hours or so. One that sticks in my head still is Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright”, the words to which I mouthed as I made my way to the lower-level bathrooms. Upon entering the theatre, the audience is guided to their seats by a playlist of hip-hop/rap songs. Haunted by the past and their obsession with the street con game, three-card monte, the brothers come to learn the true nature of their history.” names given to them as a joke by their father.

Her play, Topdog/Underdog follows the story of older Brother Lincoln and younger brother, Booth in “a darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity. Lori-Parks is one of America’s foremost playwrights, also known for “Venus” and her directorial work on films Native Son and The United States vs. The 20th-anniversary production of Susan Lori-Parks’ Pulitzer-winning play, “Topdog/Underdog” premiered at the John Golden Theater on October 20th. And what an outstanding return to the theatre it was… While the return to the stage post-pandemic has been occurring for some time now, my first experience in a theatre in years took place a few weeks ago.

Topdog underdog theatre