Jazz sensibilities infuse Jungle's 'Bars and Measures'

A new play opening at the Jungle Theater in Minneapolis Friday night tells the story of two brothers, and their weekly music lessons in the visiting room of a prison.

"Bars and Measures" is inspired by a true story. After jazz bassist Tarik Shah was arrested in 2005 on charges of terrorist activity, his younger brother, a classical pianist, came to visit him every week in prison.

Their conversations through a wire screen soon turned into jazz tutorials. The play their story inspired teaches lessons of its own about the sustaining power of brotherhood and the lessons jazz can offer democracy.

Playwright Idris Goodwin drew on his background as a hip-hop poet to create a script that underscores the musicality of the story.

"For me, playwriting has always been an aural endeavor," said Goodwin. "What makes the spoken word so interesting is that you're dealing with the meaning of the word and the sound of the word simultaneously. It's about the sound of language, the sounds of people in concert with one another. All plays have a certain meter to them, a certain tempo — a certain tone they need to strike."

Director Marion McClinton said the play at its core is about the importance of brotherhood.

"There's a certain tightness that you have with that brother that you don't have with anybody else — not even your parents," said McClinton. "There's a closeness and a recognition that one of you has known the other their entire life. You can't beat that relationship."

McClinton said he couldn't wait to get to work on "Bars and Measures." He's known for bringing a jazz sensibility to his projects, and here was a story that revolved around the liberating power of jazz.

"Jazz is the way of telling of our story, the African-American story. It's the freedom that the country promised but didn't deliver," McClinton said. "But jazz delivered it."

Associate Director E.G. Bailey said jazz is founded on authentic relationships — on individual musicians bringing their unique voices together to create something greater than any one of them.

"If we strive for true democracy, then jazz is really the music that speaks to that," Bailey said. "How do we allow everybody to be authentic, but to also be connected within a community? To me, that speaks to the heart of this story."

"Bars and Measures" features original music by jazz composer Justin Ellington. Bailey said the cast and crew have also incorporated jazz aesthetics into the lighting design, the set, even the acting.

"We'll figure out the blocking and you'll know where to go, and you'll have to hit your cues and your light cues and things like that, but the emotionality is where the jazz improvisation can come in," he explained. "And so as an actor you have the freedom to play."

Actor Ansa Akyea plays the part of the imprisoned bassist. He's never worked at the Jungle Theater before; few black actors have. Surprisingly, in its 26-year history, this is the first time the Jungle has staged a play by an African-American playwright or hired a black director.

"It feels like we're making history. You know, it's 2016 and I still feel like I'm making a first, with a new play, which is awesome, and with such a representation of people of color in this particular production," said Akyea. "It's just new blood, new energy, new culture and a new way of looking at issues — and that's great."

"Bars and Measures" runs through Oct. 9. Tarik Shah, the bassist whose story inspired the play, is still in prison. He's expected to be released in 2018.