Talented lead actor Tyrone Mitchell Henderson plays Harmond Wilks, a lawyer hoping to launch his campaign to become the first black mayor of Pittsburgh. Henderson shows remarkable charisma in the role. Wilks and his business partner Roosevelt Hicks (a savvy Howard W. Overshown) dream of transforming a blighted, decaying city block into a high-end development opportunity. The dynamic between Hicks and Wilks serves as an intellectual center for the play. Hicks is a businessman dreaming of fortune, with a poster of Tiger Woods above his desk, while Wilks is far more idealistic in his approach to the business. The poster over his desk? Martin Luther King Jr.
The emotional end of the story is carried by the people directly affected by Wilks and Hicks’ plans for the block. Doug Brown lends working-class charm to the story in the role of a struggling man looking for work. William C. Mitchell plays a man who refuses to move off the block. Mitchell’s character seems to be oblivious to his situation, yet he also carries himself with a shrewd self-confidence—it’s an interesting performance that helps to round out the cast.
The Milwaukee Rep’s production of Radio Golf runs through March 28 at the Stiemke Theater.
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