TheaterWorks’ “Broke-ology” poignant story of family and choices

HARTFORD — The Connecticut premiere of “Broke-ology” at TheaterWorks is a poignant, moving and believable story of a small family trying to make ends meet in Kansas City.
True to the saying, “if it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all,” in “Broke-ology” there is the wounded King family with a father, William, and two sons. The younger son, Malcolm, played by clear-eyed David Pegram, has chosen an academic career at the University of Connecticut, while the other older brother Ennis, played with tightly wound energy by Royce Johnson, is working at a dead-end job supporting a young family.
Their mother and William’s former wife, Sonia, is seen in the beginning, and as a recurring memory throughout. She has died sometime after the boys were born, and the father has raised them well, considering their circumstances and their environment, surrounded as they are by drugs, gangs, and blight in a bad section of Kansas City, Kansas.
Now William has contracted debilitating and Multiple Sclerosis just as Ennis’ and his girlfriend’s baby is about to be born and Malcolm is about to return to the university to a teaching career in environmental studies. Or is he going to stay and take care of his father and give up his career hopes? That is the question that dominates the action.
It’s a beautifully realized production, with just the right amount of laughter and sadness, sensitively directed by Tazewell Thompson.
The two boys behave exactly as brothers would — joking and teasing one minute and arguing and frustrated with each other the next. There’s a real and natural friendliness and love they all share, and a willingness to face difficult questions eventually.
William, who has an admirable work ethic, that we learn both the boys share in their own ways, is going down hill fast, and the question of what can be done is the central focus of the show.
The term “Broke-ology” is invented by Ennis as a mock study of what he tells his brother is a new scientific field he’s invented — how to survive less money than you need. In response, Malcolm jokes with Ennis, saying that he’s only been home a short while, but already, he says, “your making my brain hurt.”
Often the sets on the compact stage at TheaterWorks are on the minimalist side, but this set, with the living room, kitchen, and bathroom of the King household, has a detailed, lived-in look about it, with set design by Luke Hegel-Cantraella. It is interesting too that the house remains unchanged throughout, as if it is frozen in time after Sonia’s unexplained death.
The story is a loving and moving one, beautifully acted, which everyone, regardless of their circumstances, can identify with and embrace.

BROKE-OLOGY

1) Photographs:
three ½ Stars
Theater: TheaterWorks
Location: 233 Pearl St. Hartford.
Production: Written by Nathan Louis Jackson. Directed by Tazewell Thompson. Set design by Luke Hegel-Cantraella. Costume design by Harry Nadal. Lighting design by Greg Goff. Sound design by Fabian Obispo.
Running time: 2 hours with one intermission.
Show Times: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. through Oct. 24.
Tickets: Unassigned seating is $39; $49 on Friday and Saturday nights. Center reserved seats $12 extra. $12 student rush tickets at showtime with valid ID (subject to availability). Season tickets are $129 for five shows. For tickets call 860-527-7838 or visit their website at www.theaterworkshartford.org.
ACTOR…CHARACTER
Gina Daniels … Sonia King
Frank Faucette … William King
Royce Johnson … Ennis King
David Pegram … Malcolm King