The cast of “Miss Maybelline’s Nocturnal Flights of Fancy” at the M.V. Playhouse sings — quite literally at times. Although the play is not a musical as such, Miss Maybelline, while over 100 years old, can cut a rug and sing up a storm. Her inner spirit shines through whether she’s charming us with old-time numbers or shout-outs from the Civil Rights protest era, reflecting the breadth of history she has lived through.
M.V. Playhouse artistic and executive director MJ Bruder Munafo directs the talented cast.
Tonye Patano plays the lifelong Oak Bluffs resident with plenty of tales and wisdom to share. She portrays her to perfection, leaving us yearning to know the extraordinary centenarian.
We learn about Miss Maybelline’s remarkable life through her warm friendship with her autistic teenage neighbor, Trey, played with compassion and sincerity by Jamiel T. Burkhart.
Trey is earnest in all he undertakes, from bird watching to discovering how Miss Maybelline’s walker ended up nestled in the tree beside her home in the impressive stage set designed by Sean Roach, with its three well-worn houses on School Street in Oak Bluffs.
We learn from Miss Maybelline that her family home has its own story connected to the town’s African American community. In the early 20th century, the Camp Meeting Association moved the cottages of Black and Indigenous members first to the periphery and then completely out of the property.
Playwright and seasonal resident Kathleen McGhee-Anderson shares about the show, “The idea started gestating when I would listen to my mom and her friends chatting on the porches of School Street over a thirty-year period. As with every writer, the source material was being gathered without me knowing it.”
McGhee-Anderson was particularly fascinated by the removal of the cottages from the Campground. “The idea of houses and your roots and how you acquire your home was important to me as a theme because of my family history, which dated back to the 1940s when my grandparents had a Supreme Court housing fight that took place with Thurgood Marshall as their attorney when the laws about restrictive housing covenants were struck down.”
She adds, “I think that women telling stories is important. The oral tradition has existed since we first came to this country, where we were not able to learn to read and write, so the histories of our traditions have been passed on through the oral tradition, which was the truth but had never been written down.”
Miss Maybelline, too, realizes that many of the tales in her life and their significance have not been recorded. Knowing that at 110 years old, she will depart soon, she has the perfect friend in Trey, who records every fact and event in his life in his small notebook as a way to make sense of the world.
Speaking about why she chose to make Trey autistic, McGhee-Anderson shares, “I was looking for a young African American protegee who Miss Maybelline could take along with her on her journey and uplift and entrust with her story. And someone with a different kind of mind who would be receptive to her, who was porous and open to all that she would want to convey and be able to soak it all up.”
The excellent ensemble creates its own tight-knit community within the larger context of Oak Bluffs. Renee Elizabeth Wilson is Trey’s overworked, stressed mother, Greta. Jerry Clicquot is their caring, good-humored neighbor, Mr. Bly. Molly Purves plays Elaine, who lovingly delivers Meals on Wheels and is there to help no matter the situation.
Nic Vincent and Liam Bellman-Sharpe’s evocative lighting and sound design, respectively, and the expert stage crew contributed to a rich production of complexity and entertainment.
The show’s title, in part, refers to Miss Maybelline’s sundowning episodes, in which the past becomes her present. Watching her sharp mind spiral out is painful, but also a slice of what can happen in old age. Likewise, hearing Trey speak frequently about what it is like to live life on the spectrum gives us a clue into his experience.
While Miss Maybelline’s age and Trey’s autism can be viewed as challenges, Trey tells us that he has been taught to reframe things to see negatives as positives. “Both of them have what can be perceived as handicaps but what I think are gifts,” McGhee-Anderson says. “The two of them are a natural match. He has no barriers toward her, and she has none toward him.”
Another of Miss Maybelline’s flights of fancy significantly impacts the narrative.
The M.V. Playhouse has produced several of McGhee-Anderson’s works over the years. Munafo shares, “I loved this play as soon as I read there was a walker stuck up in the tree! I am very interested in good storytelling, Vineyard history, local African American history, and elevating those with different abilities — this play covers it all. We did a two-week workshop last summer, really focusing on developing the text, and culminated in two sold-out public readings.”
She adds, “M.V. Playhouse is known in the wider theater world for producing new American plays.”
Ghee-Anderson hopes that the audience will ultimately understand their neighbors more. “To feel connected to each other and to celebrate those who may not have the same politics or income, color of their skin, or the same geographic location in Martha’s Vineyard. I want people to see our commonality and universality … and to feel a bond.”
“Miss Maybelline’s Nocturnal Flights of Fancy” plays through August 10. For tickets and information, visit mvplayhouse.org/theater/2023/05/miss-maybellines-nocturnal-flights-of-fancy/.
