Rap on Broadway? Purists, relax — “Holler If Ya Hear Me,” the Tupac Shakur musical that opened Thursday night, is endearingly traditional. Yes, there’s gangsta anger and lots of profanity, but it’s packaged in skillful, old-school showbiz. No wonder, since an old hand, Tony winner Kenny Leon (“Fences,” “A Raisin in the Sun”), is at the helm.
Leon and book writer Todd Kreidler took the “Mamma Mia!” road to 2Pac’s jukebox, rather than the one in the biographical “Beautiful” — crafting a new plot around the late hip-hop icon’s songs rather than retelling his life.
Set in the present-day Midwest, the story of crime and redemption doesn’t stray far from Shakur’s own themes and trajectory. We could have done with fewer clichés: When a drug dealer says, “After tonight, I’m out of the game for good,” you just know things won’t end well.
Uttering the fateful line is Vertus (Christopher Jackson), who looks after his territory with cocky confidence. The only one who elicits more respect is John (Saul Williams), back in town after six years in jail.
Trying hard to stay straight, John takes a job at a garage run by the show’s one white dude, Griffy (Ben Thompson).
Hovering on the periphery are the girlfriends and mothers waiting for the men to cool down. Tonya Pinkins makes the most of her limited opportunities as Vertus’ mom.
We’re meant to identify with John, yet he often comes across as sullenly petulant rather than upstanding because Williams, who made his name in the 1990s slam-poetry scene, doesn’t have much range. Still, his caramel baritone works well on 2Pac’s rhymes.
We shouldn’t be surprised to see the likes of “Dear Mama” and “Keep Ya Head Up” fit so effortlessly on Broadway: After all, both rap and musical theater tell stories through song. And Shakur, who sampled Suzanne Vega in “Dopefiend’s Diner” and Bruce Hornsby in “Changes,” knew how to incorporate catchy hooks.
If this all sounds old-fashioned, it is, right down to choreographer Wayne Cilento’s pulse-quickening numbers. There’s even a big set piece involving a vintage purple Cadillac set on a rotating platform.
OK, so a rap musical can work. Will death metal be next?