The Independent newspaper of London heaps acclaim on a new stage play based on Dr. Martin Luther King's last night alive -- April 3, 1968, at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. "The Mountaintop," by Memphis-born playwright Katori Hall, imagines the interaction between King -- working on the next day's speech after his penultimate address at the Mason Temple during the sanitation workers' strike -- and a fetching motel maid who delivers room service.
Another review says "The Mountaintop" loses focus and becomes awkward because of a supernatural twist at the end. However, it says Harewood is "quite excellent," and it praises the play for exploring King's human flaws.
The world premiere run of "The Mountaintop" runs through July 4 at Theatre 503 in London.
About the playwright: Hall, a 1999 graduate of Craigmont High and the Raleigh school's first African-American valedictorian, has degrees from Columbia and Harvard and even did a summer internship here at The Commercial Appeal in 2000.
It is a relationship that is breathtaking, hilarious and heart-stopping in its exchanges and in its speedy ability to reveal character and pull the audience into the ring. One minute the Pastor and his new friend are beating each other up with rounds of oratory; the next, they're trying out how to look sexy while smoking. We discover, too, that King has stinky feet, wonders whether his moustache looks good on him or not and has an eye for the ladies. We also learn that he is terrified. Terrified that he is about to die, that the attempts on his life will finally get him. Terrified that he hasn't had the chance to fix the world and that he hasn't said goodbye to his wife and children.Portraying King is David Harewood, a British actor who stars as Nelson Mandela in the upcoming BBC TV drama "Mrs. Mandela." The Independent's reviewer compares Harewood's performance, with "his mighty grip on character," to Forrest Whitaker's Oscar-nominated role as Idi Amin in the 2006 film "The Last King of Scotland." (Paging Steven Spielberg and the producers of the MLK film in development.)
Another review says "The Mountaintop" loses focus and becomes awkward because of a supernatural twist at the end. However, it says Harewood is "quite excellent," and it praises the play for exploring King's human flaws.
The world premiere run of "The Mountaintop" runs through July 4 at Theatre 503 in London.
About the playwright: Hall, a 1999 graduate of Craigmont High and the Raleigh school's first African-American valedictorian, has degrees from Columbia and Harvard and even did a summer internship here at The Commercial Appeal in 2000.
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