An Athol Fugard classic lives again in exquisite production at the Geffen Playhouse

The humanities concern of “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys,” Athol Fugard’s apartheid-era classical from 1982, has changed. South Africa’s strategy of radical segregation that institutionalized achromatic supremacy was dismantled successful 1994.

Fugard, who died past year, played a relation successful bringing planetary attraction to the injustices of his homeland done plays that chronicled the quality toll of specified corrosive governmental policies. The powerfulness of his enactment resides not successful ideological statement oregon motivation screed but successful the reflection of characters struggling to support their humanity successful an inhuman system.

Precisely for this reason, “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” has mislaid nary of its affectional validity, arsenic the exquisite caller accumulation that opened astatine the Geffen Playhouse connected Thursday reveals. The revival stars Tony victor John Kani (“The Island,” “Sizwe Banzi Is Dead”), a treasured collaborative spouse of Fugard’s and 1 of the champion surviving interpreters of his work. His show unsocial makes this an unmissable event, but that’s not the lone crushed you should spot it.

At a clip erstwhile galore of america are struggling to spot a aboriginal that isn’t conscionable a fulfillment of the worst impulses of the corrupt, exploitative, anti-democratic present, Fugard offers a imaginativeness of perseverance and resistance. “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” makes nary bare promises, but it reminds america that anticipation is contingent connected america retaining our souls.

Emily Mann and Geffen Playhouse creator manager Tarell Alvin McCraney person joined forces to direct. The operation is an effectual one. McCraney has a mode of drafting the champion from actors successful choky combustible spaces and Mann has a agelong past with Fugard. When she was creator manager of the McCarter Theatre, she made the Princeton venue 1 of his American homes. (I saw the narration up adjacent respective decades agone from my vantage astatine the theater’s literate office.)

John Kani, left, and Nyasha Hatendi successful “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” astatine Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

Set successful the St. George’s Park Tearoom successful Port Elizabeth connected a rainy time successful 1950, the play concentrates connected the relationships of 3 characters: Hally (Ben Beatty), a callow 17-year-old achromatic schoolboy whose parent owns the cafe, and Sam (Kani) and Willie (Nyasha Hatendi), 2 Black men employed arsenic servants there.

When the play begins, Willie is practicing his moves for an upcoming ballroom creation contention helium has entered with his girlfriend, Hilda. Sam has been giving him pointers, but Willie is inactive unsmooth astir the edges. Sam points retired his volatile friend’s method and temperamental flaws, but helium doesn’t springiness up connected him, conscionable arsenic helium doesn’t springiness up connected Hally, who arrives astatine the tearoom aft schoolhouse successful a tempest of vulnerability and arrogance.

Nyasha Hatendi, from left, Ben Beatty and John Kani successful “‘Master Harold’… and the Boys” astatine Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

Hally is speedy to instrumentality a superior code with Sam and Willie, but the information is that Sam has been a surrogate begetter to him. Sam has encouraged the lad to beryllium much conscientious with his studies and has been learning alongside him for years, picking up his schoolbooks and offering ideas connected however to marque the assignments much meaningful.

Sam doesn’t person Hally’s vocabulary, but helium has thing much valuable: contented and maturity. Hally has severely needed a begetter figure. His ain father, a crippled, cantankerous drunk, has been a root of shame to him.

Hally’s temper darkens arsenic soon arsenic helium learns from Sam that his parent is bringing his dada location from the hospital. He laments the extremity of his home peace, but Sam urges him to beryllium much respectful — proposal that infuriates Hally, who spends the remainder of the play asserting his dominance implicit the Black men who person been much caring toward him than his ain parents.

Ben Beatty, from left, Nyasha Hatendi and John Kani successful “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” astatine Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

The play has the old-fashioned carpentry of a coagulated one-act oregon mid-century abbreviated story. The characters are cautiously introduced, the crippled is hastened on by a telephone connected the antagonistic that rings with updates from the parent connected her plans to retrieve the father, and the past is revisited done recollections that springiness emergence to theatrical games that ne'er rather interruption the framework of the story.

There’s a batch of talk. Fugard lets his scholastic streak thrust a bully woody of the conversation. (Learning arsenic a conveyance for translation was ever a root of excitement for him.) Some of the prattle tin consciousness similar treading water, a delaying maneuver until the inevitable confrontation scene. But the characters unfold earlier america successful their exchanges, and the play makes country for the actors to inhabit the complexities and contradictions of lives caught successful the vise of history.

Beatty, who happens to beryllium the lad of Warren Beatty and Annette Bening brings a fresh-faced vulnerability to the relation of Hally. He has some the flush of younker and the imperious temper of a privileged young antheral who hasn’t grown up and astir apt ne'er will. The wounded and humiliation down Hally’s eyes let america to follow Sam’s sympathetic cognition toward the boy, adjacent arsenic Beatty refuses to soften the character’s wrathful entitlement.

Nyasha Hatendi successful “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” astatine Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

Sam knows the shame Hally has suffered from his father’s drunken sprees. And having had nary prime but to upwind the indignities of his ain beingness arsenic a Black antheral successful South Africa, helium has tried to impart immoderate of his spot portion generously filling the paternal vacuum.

One peculiarly mortifying occurrence from the past haunts Hally. After helium and Sam fetched his begetter successful a drunken heap astatine a bar, Sam made the lad a kite, a flimsy, handcrafted patchwork that miraculously took formation and near Hally with a representation that fills him with some wonderment and sadness. He’s bemused successful retrospect by the unusual spectacle of a “little achromatic lad successful abbreviated trousers” frolicking with a Black antheral aged capable to beryllium his father. But the struggle betwixt his attachment to Sam and the world of South African nine is beyond his capableness to reconcile.

Sam is expected to beryllium successful his mid-40s, but the quality present says he’s 70 to accommodate Kani, who has returned to a relation helium archetypal played successful the 1983 South Africa premiere. There’s a gramps prime to Kani’s Sam, but the summation successful years has lone deepened the play’s poignancy. When Sam looks astatine Hally, helium hopes to drawback a glimpse of the aboriginal helium has tried successful his loving mode to shape. Hally’s vindictive crook is simply a betrayal, not conscionable of their bond, but of the imagination of a much equitable South Africa that could tolerate a Black antheral being a mentor to a spoiled, brokenhearted achromatic kid.

Ben Beatty, left, and John Kani successful “‘Master Harold’ … and the Boys” astatine Geffen Playhouse.

(Jeff Lorch)

The production, subduedly aglow successful Adam Honoré and Spencer Doughtie’s lighting, has the lyrical quality of a vintage photograph magically summoned to life. Scenic decorator Beowulf Boritt’s quaint tearoom seems some existent and hallucinatory, with a melancholy rainfall pouring down successful the background. Susan Hilferty’s costumes usher america backmost to a clip erstwhile hierarchies were not lone disposable but rigorously enforced.

There’s 1 climactic infinitesimal involving spitting erstwhile the staging undermines the action. A elemental accommodation of the blocking would alleviate the fakery. What needs nary modification, however, is the battered dignity of Sam’s presence.

With a far-seeing stillness, Kani’s Sam does much than endure. He holds accelerated to what helium knows to beryllium true: the majesty of his ain goodness.

As Hally reverts to the radical codification of South African men similar his father, Hatendi’s Willie, successful an impressively calibrated performance, tries to stanch Sam’s affectional bleeding. Could lasting by 1 different beryllium the astir extremist enactment of all?

In “The Tempest,” Prospero comes to recognize that “the rarer enactment is/ In virtuousness than successful vengeance.” Sam has a akin if quieter epiphany, recognizing that his ain humanity is 1 conflict the aboriginal South Africa cannot spend him to lose.