The Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago Award-winning Production of Athol Fugard's Master Harold And The Boys

1 large (4)-0 — THRILLED TO WIN A TOP CHICAGO THEATRE ACTING HONOR!: Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago Founder and Los Angeles-based Theatre Artist DARRYL MAXIMILIAN ROBINSON is winner of a 1997 CHICAGO JOSEPH JEFFERSON CITATION AWARD as Outstanding Actor In A Principal Role In A Play for his critically-praised performance as SAM SEMELA in The ESC's 1997 revival production of the great South African playwright ATHOL FUGARD'S "MASTER HAROLD AND THE BOYS" directed by Mr. Robinson and presented at THE HEARTLAND CAFE STUDIO THEATRE in The Rogers' Park neighborhood of The Windy City. Of the multiple awards, nominations and other honors he has received for performance on the stage during his 46-year-long career, Mr. Robinson's Best Actor JEFF AWARD for Fugard's anti-apartheid dramatic masterpiece is his personal favorite. 2017 Photo of Darryl Maximilian Robinson In His Awards Room by J. L. WATT.

"One never thought a that a production of Athol Fugard's "Master Harold...And The Boys" could exceed the production in which James Earl Jones starred as Sam Semela until the Excaliber Shakespeare Company came along with Darryl Maximilian Robinson in the role. Currently appearing at the Heartland Cafe Studio Theatre, 7000 North Glenwood, through March 16th on Wednesdays and Sundays, the production is compelling for its infallible dramatic urgency and superb sense of style. Other cast members include Kevin Adair as Hally and Eliyahu Miller as Willie. Robinson is producer and director." -- Earl Calloway, The Chicago Defender, Theatre Wing, March 5, 1997.

"Directed by founder Darryl Maximilian Robinson, who plays Sam, the play soars with a vibrancy that is engulfing. His joyousness is infectious. His reflections, insightful. His teachings ( either dance steps or concerned lessons of learning ) makes one feel his commitment, his dedication, his desire to make the world a little better for having lived in it. A highly notable presentation, he makes this play a memorable evening of theatre one does not easily forget." -- Al Boswell, The Gary Info, Feb. 27, 1997.

"Darryl Maximilian Robinson, whose ardent love of acting invigorates every action of the mature, wizened Sam, tolerates no submission. The boy's friend and mentor, he is slammed with the double-indignity of experiencing the fury of racism from an adolescent he has guided, protected and educated." -- Mike Spitz, Nightlines Theatre, Feb. 26, 1997.

"Director Darryl Maximilian Robinson obviously displays a deep love for and belief in Fugard's intimate drama. Crisply paced, with a solid understanding of the playwright's serious playfulness, this production does quiet yet moving justice to the intensely unfolding material. Gregory Chistopher Armstrong's Willie maintains a smooth, unaffected realness through sincere body language and softly-tempered delivery. And Kevin Heckman's painfully torn Hally, who ocillates between hope and despair, delivers an honestly complex performance that enables us to sympathize with the frailties and confused loyalties of all parties locked in apartheid's crushing grip". -- Lucia Mauro, The New City, Recommended, Jan 30,-Feb. 2, 1997.

During The 1990s, Excaliber Shakespeare Company Founder Darryl Maximilian Robinson Captured Multiple Chicago Theatre Award Honors For His Intimate Staging of Athol Fugard's Master Harold...And The Boys at The Windy City's Heartland Cafe Studio Theatre In Rogers Park[]

Without question one of the most moving and emotionally wrenching plays by the great South African playwright Athol Fugard is his personal memoir of racism known as Master Harold...And The Boys. The acclaimed playwright / director's original 1982 Yale Repertory and Broadway productions captured huge critical response and awards recognition ( including 1982 Tony Award Nominations for Best Play and Best Director for Fugard, and a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor In A Play on Broadway for Zakes Mokae for his moving performance as Sam Semela ). There was a successful Showtime Television version of the play with Mokae recreating his award-winning role. And though the play is considered a great and potent dramatic work addressing the harmful effects of racism, by the early 1990s, not many regional or local American productions of the work were being staged. In St. Louis, during the Spring of 1993, Darryl Maximilian Robinson, Producer-Director of Excaliber Productions, Ltd. ( ably assisted by skilled co-designer and production stage manager J. L. Watt ) directed and played the role of Sam Semela in the work opposite talented young actors Philip Alexis Watt as Hally and Carey S. Means as Willie in a small, well-received revival of the work at The Wabash Triangle Cafe in St. Louis. Based upon the effect the work had on local audiences during that production ( the issue of racism was quite relevant then, as it is now! ), Mr. Robinson staged a more detailed 1997 revival of the work ( on this occasion ably assisted by dramaturg, co-designer and co-producer Jeff Helgeson ) at Chicago's Heartland Cafe Studio Theatre in the Windy City's northside Rogers Park neighborhood. Under the banner of The Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago, Darryl Maximilian Robinson appeared as Sam Semela opposite skilled performers Kevin Heckman ( later replaced by the gifted Kevin Adair ) as Hally and Gregory Christopher "Word Jazzman" Armstrong ( later replaced by talented newcomer Eliyahu Miller ) as Willie. The production, designed, produced and directed by Mr. Robinson captured several favorable reviews and garnered for Mr. Robinson and The ESC multiple theatre honors including a 1997 Chicago Joseph Jefferson Citation Award Nomination for Outstanding Production of the Year ( to The ESC ); a 1997 Chicago Joseph Jefferson Citation Award Nomination for Outstanding Actor In A Principal Role In A Play ( to Mr. Robinson ); a 1997 Chicago Black Theatre Alliance Award Nomination for Best Leading Actor In A Play ( to Mr. Robinson ); and a 1997 Chicago Black Theatre Alliance Award Nomination for Best Sound Design ( to Mr. Robinson and Mr. Helgeson ).The ESC's 1997 revival of Athol Fugard's Master Harold...And The Boys also received Letters of Commendation and Recommendation from The Chicago South African Consulat General's Office and The City of Chicago Dept. of Human Relations praising the effectiveness of the production and encouraging audiences to see the great Fugard's work. In addition to these notable accolades, at the end of the 1996-1997 theatre season, Mr. Robinson, Mr. Heckman and Mr. Armstrong were invited to perform a scene from The ESC's revival of Master Harold...And The Boys at the 24th Annual Joseph Jefferson Citation Awards Ceremony at Chicago's Park West Theatre on June 9, 1997. Though the ESC's revival would lose the Outstanding Production of the Year Award to The Pegasus Players' highly-praised, 6-hour, epic staging of "The Kentucky Cycle", Darryl Maximilian Robinson would win a 1997 Joseph Jefferson Citation Award as Outstanding Actor In A Principal Role In A Play for his performance as Sam Semela in Master Harold...And The Boys. To this day, the ESC's revival of Fugard's dramatic masterpiece remains the most honored production in the multiracial, non-Equity professional chamber theatre's history.

"Master Harold...and the boys is a politically and socially poignant contemporary drama written by Athol Fugard. This magnificent drama appeared on Broadway in 1982, starring Danny Glover as Willie, Lonny Price as Hally and Zakes Mokae as Sam. Mokae went on to claim a Tony Award for the Best Featured Actor on Broadway for his performance and also star in the Showtime Cable Television version of the play. The issues taken to task in this play are issues that still plague South Africa and the United States today. The play is written in a 1950 time frame, taking place in St. George's Park Tea Room, Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Excaliber Productions performed Master Harold at the Wabash Triangle Cafe. The starring trio this time included Carey S. Means as Willie, Philip Alexis Watt as Hally and Darryl Maximilian Robinson as Sam. Carey's strong performance as Willie, a slow-witted busboy, was enhanced by his voice, husky with a South African / British accent. He also added a humorous touch to the play, trying to learn to ballroom dance for a contest without a partner. Philip's performance as Hally, or Master Harold, an adolescent schoolboy, was most effective, due not only to his true boyishness, but to his fine acting as well. Darryl Maximilian's performance as Sam, the aging Maitre'd, was excellent. The use of his voice, British accent and body language made Sam more than just a character portrayal. Set design was very simple, but appropriate; the cabaret atmosphere of the Wabash Triangle Cafe blended in to provide an extention for the set that allowed the audience to feel like a part of the action. This was not family entertainment, however, due to some language not quite suitable for children. Nevertheless, this production, like all Excaliber performances I have seen, was fantastic!" -- Lorna A. Vaughn, Intermission Magazine, St. Louis Edtion, May 1993.

A MASTER HAROLD AND THE BOYS DIRECTOR & PERFORMER ALUM'S UPDATE!:

Darryl Maximilian Robinson has become noted as the very first black actor in American Theatre History to portray on stage a trio of classic dramatic roles including: Sir Thomas More in Robert Bolt's "A Man For All Seasons" ( in a 1984 revival presented by The University Players of The University of Missouri-St. Louis and directed by AEA Member John Grassilli at The Benton Hall Theater ); King Henry II in a 1992 multiracial cast revival of James Goldman's "The Lion In Winter" ( directed by Mr. Robinson for his chamber theatre Excaliber Productions, Ltd in St. Louis and staged at The Wabash Triangle Cafe ); and Andrew Wyke ( opposite the talented actor Sean Nix as Milo Tindle ) in a 2000, 30th Anniversary, all-black cast revival of Anthony Shaffer's "Sleuth" presented under Mr. Robinson's direction by his chamber theatre The Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago at The Harrison Street Galleries Studio Theatre of Oak Park, Illinois. Most recently, Darryl Maximilian Robinson was named a winner of a 2022 Making The World Happening Award for his numerous online theatre-related offerings at Allevents.in.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/VIDEO-Darryl-Maximilian-Robinson-Performs-Two-Versions-of-The-Bards-St-Crispins-Day-Speech-in-LA-20191226

https://patch.com/illinois/chicago/calendar/event/20191231/713099/until-dec-31-2019-the-public-may-go-online-vote-for-drood

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhWim4B2LR0

Darryl_Maximilian_Robinson_Rehearses_Bard's_St._Crispin's_Day_Speech_At_LA's_Lincoln_Heights_Jail!-1576977335 — Darryl Maximilian Robinson Rehearses Bard's St. Crispin's Day Speech At LA's Lincoln Heights Jail!-1576977335

Darryl_Maximilian_Robinson_Presents_Bard's_St._Crispin's_Day_Speech_In_LA_(_The_Inside_Rendition_)!-1577080289 — Darryl Maximilian Robinson Presents Bard's St. Crispin's Day Speech In LA ( The Inside Rendition )!-1577080289

Note: The multiracial, non-Equity professional chamber theatre The Excaliber Shakespeare Company of Chicago is pleased, proud and honored to share and present this archival article in acknowledgement of 2019: The Year of Chicago Theatre! This theatre article is also presented in appreciation of the fine and committed work of all of Excaliber Productions, Ltd. Company Members of St. Louis, Missouri and as part of The Excaliber Shakespeare Company Los Angeles Archival Project.

https://www.alignable.com/los-angeles-ca/the-excaliber-shakespeare-company-los-angeles-archival-project