Scenes From 'Choir Boy'

A MATTER OF HONOR Jeremy Pope, center, stars in “Choir Boy” as Pharus, the most talented tenor at the prestigious, all-black Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys. Pharus, who is gay, is taunted by a fellow choir member but refuses to identify him to school authorities because a “Drew man” wouldn’t. The production opened on Jan. 8, 2019, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater.

BOLDFACE NAMES Tarell Alvin McCraney, the playwright, stopped to greet an audience member on opening night. The man was identified as William J. Clinton, a Chappaqua, N.Y., resident in from the suburbs for an evening of Broadway theater. (Mr. Clinton was accompanied by his wife, Hillary R. Clinton, not pictured here. )

THE TIMES CRITIC LOVED IT. OR DID HE? On the morning after opening night, “Choir Boy” was right at the top of the front of the Arts section of The New York Times (yes, Virginia, there’s still a print edition). And right next to the title was the official check mark coveted by all New York theater productions: “Choir Boy” was a Critic’s Pick. So it was a little puzzling to see that Jesse Green’s review complained about — among other things — obvious plot points, character credibility and “tonally blurry staging.” For a show that readers absolutely shouldn’t miss, it certainly seemed to have a lot of flaws.

THE WHITE GUY Austin Pendleton, far right, is the single white cast member of “Choir Boy.” He plays a retired academic (character name: Mr. Pendleton) brought in to teach a class in creative thinking — and eventually to work with the choir. When assigning a research project to the students, Mr. Pendleton suggests they use “i-mail or g-tunes.”

AUTHORITY FIGURE Chuck Cooper (right, with Pope) plays the school’s headmaster, who doesn’t realize that the homophobic bully Pharus refuses to identify is his own nephew Bobby (J. Quinton Johnson). Variety called the production “sweetly exuberant” and the music “as joyous to the audience as it is for Pharus.” The musical director is Jason Michael Webb, and the choreographer is Camille A. Brown.

LOCKER ROOM TALK AND PLENTY TO SAY McCraney uses “Choir Boy” to comment on class, race, sexuality and the power of what some still call “Negro spirituals” to bolster courage, strength and healing.. Time Out New York praised the play as “specific, lyrical and touching” and McCraney for bringing a “ringing, unapologetic queer black voice to Broadway.”

HAIRCUT BAR John Clay III (standing, with Pope) plays A.J., the most compassionate hunky straight roommate a young gay man could hope for. Maybe this theatrical moment (meaning the whole play, not just this pivotal scene) is more about the playwright than this specific work. Green’s Times review noted that McCraney’s strengths “have never been the canonical ones anyway, in which character leads to action that in turn creates dramatic architecture.” The best part of his work, Green suggested, “favors color, mood and unspoken feeling.” And the box office has spoken: A limited-run production, “Choir Boy” has been extended through March 10.

CHOIR BOY, Samuel J. Friedman Theater, 261 West 47th Street, choirboybroadway.com. 1 hour 45 minutes (no intermission). Opened on Jan. 8, 2019. Limited run. Extended through March 10.