Going into About Face Theatre’s opening night of “Lavender Men,” a queer fantasia that reimagines Abraham Lincoln’s relationship with his law clerk, I didn’t expect to leave the theater with Tim Minchin’s lyrics from the musical “Matilda” running through my head. But the narrator of Roger Q. Mason’s historical dreamscape and the protagonist of Minchin’s Roald Dahl adaptation share a similar outlook. As Matilda puts it, “Nobody else is gonna put it right for me / Nobody but me is going to change my story.”
According to Mason’s bio, the Black and Filipinx playwright aims to use “the lens of history to disrupt the biases that divide rather than unite us.” Inspired by Mason’s time living in Chicago, “Lavender Men” mines that endless source of mythmaking for Illinoisans: Honest Abe. The narrator, Taffeta (Julian “joolz” Stroop) — described in the play’s synopsis as a “fat, multi-racial femme” — conjures the ghosts of Lincoln (Matt Martin) and Elmer Ellsworth (Shea Petersen) to spin a tale of love, loss and self-acceptance. Initially reluctant to relive their tragic past, the two men are enticed by Taffeta’s invitation to change their story.
Directed by Lucky Stiff in its Midwest premiere, “Lavender Men” is as much Taffeta’s tale as that of Abe and Elmer. Taffeta not only plays the other characters but inserts herself into the narrative to muse on the erasure of people of color and LGBTQ+ people throughout history. While playing Sadie, the Black woman who cleans Lincoln’s law office, she confronts the soon-to-be Great Emancipator about his problematic views of African Americans. In other scenes, Taffeta fuses her portrayal of Mary Todd Lincoln with her own experiences of disordered eating.
Narratively, the connections between past and present often feel stretched. The most effective parts of Taffeta’s story show her journey toward self-love in the present. In the opening scene, she recites a litany of fatphobic, misogynistic and racist language that has been hurled her way by anyone from one-night stands to passersby on the street. Dee Etti-Williams’ sound design intermittently transforms these lines into a warped refrain of voices in Taffeta’s head, demonstrating the harmful internalization of such abuse.
But what does this have to do with an antebellum gay romance? The answer to that question was hazy for me. Taffeta’s openly revisionist history has Lincoln falling in love with Ellsworth, a historical figure who served in the U.S. Army, trained with Lincoln as a law clerk, assisted in his presidential campaign and became the first Union officer to die in the Civil War when he was shot while attempting to remove a Confederate flag from a hotel in Alexandria, Virginia.
Martin and Petersen have strong chemistry as Abe and Elmer. The combined efforts of Etti-Williams, choreographer Jacinda Ratcliffe and lighting designer Ben Carne give their love story a whimsical quality. Bathed in dreamy purple light, the two men first lock eyes to Leonard Bernstein’s music from Tony and Maria’s first meeting in “West Side Story.” Courtney Abbott’s intimacy choreography also stands out as their relationship heats up.
The lovers’ journey somewhat parallels Taffeta’s; when Elmer bemoans his small stature and its limitations on his military aspirations, Abe responds that insults about his appearance are only true if you believe them. The theme of self-acceptance ties together the past and present as the play explores the question: What if we could reject the stories that others tell about us and change the stories we tell ourselves?
This line of thought should be affirming for many audience members, and not only for those who share elements of Taffeta’s identity. Unfortunately, the narrative threads of the play’s two storylines don’t hold together. Taffeta eventually realizes the limitations of looking to two dead white guys to reexamine her own place in history, but why does she summon Abe and Elmer in the first place? I’m still not sure. So, although “Lavender Men” has romance, humor and a fierce narrator, it’s ultimately rather baffling.
Emily McClanathan is a freelance critic.
Review: “Lavender Men” (2 stars)
When: Through June 8
Where: The Den Theatre, 1331 N Milwaukee Ave
Running time: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Tickets: Pay what you can ($5-$35) at 773-697-3830 and AboutFaceTheatre.com
