FAT HAM

Illusion Consultant

Written by James Ijames

Directed by Taylor Reynolds

Studio Theatre, 2023

Hamlet, but with more barbeque and disco. Swapping a Danish castle for a North Carolina BBQ pit, Fat Ham remakes Shakespeare’s story of murder and revenge into what the New York Times calls “a hilarious yet profound tragedy smothered in comedy.” Juicy, a Black queer Southern kid, has a lot on his plate already when his father’s ghost shows up, demanding vengeance. As generations clash at the family’s backyard barbeque, Juicy must face the legacies of violence he’s been raised with and shape the man he wants to be in James Ijames’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play fresh from its Tony-nominated Broadway run.

Ryan was the Illusion Consultant for this production. Ryan worked closely with the director and design team to create a language of illusion for the character of Pap, a ghost. Although many ideas were workshopped, the final production featured a more subtle approach to this magic design-a door ominously opening, an appearance in a cloud of smoke, a comically flying bedsheet traveling up the aisles above the heads of the audience.

Reviews:

“Studio Theatre serves up a delectable platter in ‘Fat Ham’. All the performances radiate style. The design aspects, too, are excellent…Pap’s ghost (in a white suit that lights up like a Christmas tree) materializes to urge the reluctant Juicy to avenge him.”-Washington Post

“The entire crew deserves a shoutout for excellence in sound, set, lighting, illusion, and props. You won’t find theater more succulent than this: James Ijames’ Fat Ham at Studio Theatre is a scrumptious feast for the soul — fork-tender, perfectly rendered, and brimming with zest!”-DC Theater Arts

“The vibrant, emotionally rich production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy at Studio, directed by Taylor Reynolds, plunks the audience down in that backyard for an up-close seat at a family BBQ filled with laughs, fun, fights, fabulous karaoke, and, obviously, Shakespearean levels of raging domestic dysfunction.”-Metro Weekly