Theater review
“Rebirth! The Musical”
May 31-June 1, $33-$55.50. Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta, 404-881-2100, www.foxtheatre.org
Talk to Rob Jackson about the upcoming premiere of “Rebirth! The Musical” and you’re bound to rethink your relationships long before the production hits the stage.
That’s a good thing because taking stock is exactly what the 33-year-old Atlanta native intended when he decided three years ago to pen “Rebirth,” opening Friday at the Fox Theatre.
“I hope people, no matter their faith walk, will take a deeper look at their relationship with themselves, to others and God,” he said.
Set in the year 2156, in a post-apocalyptic California town called Bethel, “Rebirth” is a story of faith, knowing what we believe and why.
Jackson, raised Southern Baptist, found himself at that crossroads in the midst of a family tragedy that caused him in 2004 for the first time in his life to question his own faith.
As he struggled to come to terms with the pain he felt, he said he remembered a question posed during a sermon he’d heard two years earlier.
“Why are you here?” the minister asked.
Until then, Jackson said he attended church, sometime four times a week, because his parents insisted. The question and the pain forced him, though, to finally deal with his relationship with the God he’d heard about his entire life.
It also evoked from him a vow, he said.
“After going through what I went through I promised myself that I would do work that would add value to people’s lives,” Jackson said. “When I go to a show, I ask how did this add value to my life. I want people to ask that same question when they see my work and have an answer.”
Whether audiences come away with answers or not, “Rebirth” — starring Lynn Whitfield; Quinnes “Q” Parker, formerly of the Grammy-winning R&B group 112; and Thomas “Nephew Tommy” Miles — promises to raise lots of questions, not the least of which is what do you believe?
The musical tells the story of people toiling under the oppressive leadership of a mysterious entity called “Mia, the Mother of Earth,” played by Whitfield. When a young man named Jonathan receives an ancient book on his birthday and is inspired to spread the good news, they must decide whether to believe his message or continue blindly following Mia, who is clearly not what she seems.
In a break from rehearsals last week, Miles, a seasoned actor and comedian famed for the prank calls on “The Steve Harvey Morning Show,” said he has spent the past 10 years doing “church” plays, but “Rebirth” is by far one of the best.
“This one is on a whole other level,” he said. “Not only is it really high-tech, it makes you think.”
Miles, a fan of the popular HBO series “Game of Thrones,” said he channeled Lannister to get into character for the general he plays.
“He is a true king, a true warrior, and you feel it,” Miles said. “I took that and said I am a leader of an army, the person right under the God we serve. But don’t get me wrong, we’re on the wrong side because we’re following this Mia.”
Jackson, whose use of art to teach and entertain dates to his days with the Youth Ensemble of Atlanta, said he just hopes people choose.
And although he didn’t become the preacher many of his classmates predicted he’d become, he said, “The stage is my pulpit and I use it as such.”
