standing ovation can be a tricky thing. All you need is one overenthusiastic or naive theater-goer and the rest of the audience gets guilted into standing up, all for a mediocre performance.

A good review of a good play is even trickier. It’s much easier to pick on the sound guy who wasn’t paying attention than it is to describe exactly why the play was so good. Critics have an easy time figuring out where a production goes wrong—when something goes right, it’s just good. Which is frustrating for those who make their (albeit meager) living picking on stuff.

	Walter and his wife share a moment in the Babcock’s “Raisin in the Sun.”

This is why writing about the University of Utah’s Babcock Theatre’s production of “A Raisin in the Sun” is difficult. A great script (the first play by a black woman, Lorraine Hansberry, ever to grace Broadway), a good cast, even the set with its worn-out wallpaper—are all very good. This is why I was glad when some people in the audience got up at the end to give a standing ovation, because they weren’t standing up for a mediocre production.

However (and this is where the bitchy critic takes over), the production does hit a few snags on its way from goodness to greatness.

“A Raisin in the Sun” takes its name and its inspiration from the Langston Hughes poem “Harlem (A Dream Deferred).” “Harlem” captures the frustration of African Americans in their day-to-day struggles with racism.

Hansberry’s script deals with the same issues. It tells the story of Walter Younger (Frederick Jackson), a chauffeur living in the south side of Chicago in the 1960s with his wife Ruth (Ashley Bryant), mother (Rita Martin), son Travis (Wesley Austin) and sister Beneatha (Lorry A. Houston). When the play opens, they are waiting for a large insurance check to arrive for Mama. Walter, hopelessly frustrated with his job, hopes to use the money to open up a liquor store. Beneatha wants to go to medical school and Mama and Ruth want to finally be able to buy a house for their family.

The play explores not only the frustration and racism the characters face (the only white person on stage continuously refers to the family as “you people”), but also family dynamics and man’s desire to find his own place in the world.

The cast picks up nicely on the family relationships so that every instant does not have to feel Very Important and Dramatic. Instead, it simply feels like we’re watching a family in its day-to-day existence. You want to like the Youngers. You do like the Youngers (most of the time).

Martin is excellent as the commanding Mama, as is Bryant as Walter’s long-suffering wife. Jackson, however, sometimes resorts to talking loudly to express emotion, which doesn’t always work so well. But the oddest performance of the night comes from Brein Jones as Joseph Asagai, one of Beneatha’s suitors. Asagai has a slow-talking, childlike wonder that almost works and almost doesn’t.

It’s also interesting to note that some of the actors are students at the U and some come from the community.

Though it was written in the ’60s, it’s surprising how much relevance “A Raisin in the Sun” has today. It’s nice to see it treated so well, even if a few snags keep it away from perfection.

“A Raisin in the Sun” plays at the U’s Babcock Theatre each night through Sunday, Nov. 16 and next Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 20 through 23. Shows take place at 7:30 p.m., except on Sundays at 7:00 p.m. Saturday Matinees start at 2:00 p.m., and the one on Nov. 22 precedes a discussion. Tickets are $12, $6 for U students. Call ArtTix, 355-ARTS, or the Union Services Desk, 581-5888, for more information. To purchase tickets online, go to www.ArtTix.org.
bobbi@red-mag.com