*Whether or not you were a frequent guest at comedy clubs in the times of Dick Gregory or caught his stand up act on TV, Emmy Award winning actor Joe Morton will consume you with his embodiment of Gregory’s words, wit and biting candor.
The Wallis in association with John Legend, Get Lifted Film Company, Mike Jackson, Jackie Judd, The Private Theatre, Eric Falkenstein, Simon Says Entertainment, Beth Hubbard and Jamie Cesa present Joe Morton in Turn Me Loose– A Play About Comic Genius Dick Gregory.
Writer Gretchen Law has penned this prolific work and director John Gould Rubin provides a raw and uncensored Dick Gregory experience. It’s a cross between being at the theatre and in the club at the same time. Joe Morton morphs Dick Gregory as he moves in between the audience in an up close and very personal memoir revealed as stand up, as monologues and as diatribes; all the signature banter of the late Dick Gregory.
Morton gives a trans formative performance in non-traditional theatre style, with each dramatic progression drawing on the complexities of Gregory’s life. His friendship with slain civil rights worker Medgar Evars, the grief of losing his young son, his friendship with the late Hugh Hefner and his angst over the perils of being Black in America.
The irony and the humor is intertwined for an enjoyable evening of genuine laughter and uncomfortable reality checks that are as relevant today as they were when the real Dick Gregory rose to fame in a segregated nation in the 1960’s. Also appearing is John Carlin who plays a plethora of characters that Gregory encounters during his life. Carlin’s supporting role is duly noted and serves as a viable anchor to the star.
“When Dick Gregory left this life on August 19, national obituaries and television commentators across the country extolled his legacy, especially his decades-long devotion to social justice,” said the producing team of Turn Me Loose. “That morning, in the hospital room in which he died, a hospital orderly took it upon himself to alter the caregivers’ white board. Under the heading ‘What I would like you to know about me,’ he wrote a profound but simple and perfectly accurate testament:
- Health Guru
- Comedian
- Civil Rights Activist
- Legend
Dick Gregory was born October 12, 1932 and died August 19, 2017. The legend of Mr. Gregory lives on in “Turn Me Loose,” now showing Fridays- Sundays, extended through November 19th 2017. For more information about Turn Me Loose, please visit: TurnMeLoosePlay.com Or call – 310.746.4000 Box Office – Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts Ticket Services 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA, 90210 Like The Wallis on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram.
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