Tuesday, February 04, 2025
City Club Night w/ "Fat Ham"
Five Reasons You Should Join Us for “Fat Ham”
Your City Club is partnering up with Cleveland Playhouse to create a City Club Night during the run of the Pulitzer Prize winning Hamlet adaptation “Fat Ham” by James Ijames. City Club Night is Thursday 2/13. You should be there. Here’s why:
1. This is a WILD adaptation. James Ijames reimagines the central character as a queer Black twenty-something; his name is Juicy, and the setting is a backyard barbecue. And while there’s no swordplay or holding skulls aloft in the cemetery, the skeleton of the story will feel familiar. Juicy’s father is dead, and his father’s brother has become his new stepfather. Juicy’s father’s ghost drops by to drop the bomb that his brother actually murdered him, and, yeah, you probably remember the rest. But outside of Denmark and into a backyard that could be on Cleveland’s east side, it hits different. And it’s great.
2. These themes never get old. Whether you studied Shakespeare, saw Hamlet on a stage once, or are just vaguely aware of the narrative, these themes are familiar. Who hasn’t asked him or herself who am I supposed to be? How important are my father’s expectations of me? Who are my friends to me? And who is my mother, really? Juicy and the rest of the cast of characters have answers.
3. It’s probably been a while since you’ve treated yourself to the theater. The Greeks understood that key to surviving the human condition is the chance to examine it as a spectator once in a while. That allows us to experience our emotions without being consumed by them. In a moment that can feel very emotionally taxing, this feels like just the right thing.
4. We’re going to have a talkback! After the play is over, some of the key creators will join us on stage to discuss their process, what the characters mean to them, and what they think this new version of an age old story is all about.
5. We got you a sweet discount. We get it. Theater seats aren’t cheap. We’ve got you. Our partners are bringing the price down to $50 for the City Club community.
Use promo code: CITYCLUB (valid February 13th only).
Want to learn more about Fat Ham? Check out CPH’s website, or read why the play won the Pulitzer!
Also, here’s a great video from CPH:
A promo code for the $50 tix is set up for Feb. 13, the code is CITYCLUB.
