'Plays still matter to the health of Broadway': Leslie Odom Jr. on 'Purlie Victorious'
It's been three months since Leslie Odom Jr. last preached and schemed in "Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch," a project he'd been plotting since the 2016 night he won the Tony for his performance as Aaron Burr in "Hamilton."
The Broadway revival of Ossie Davis' high-octane farce starred Odom as the titular traveling minister who returns to southern Georgia to free his family, buy his old plantation master's barn and turn it into a racially integrated church — a plan pulled off with indignant monologues, satirical punchlines and plenty of physical comedy. Directed by Kenny Leon, the play's first commercial production in six decades earned six Tony Award nominations, including for Odom's performance; a filmed version premieres Friday on PBS, as part of its Great Performances series.
"It's the most demanding role I've ever done," Odom told The Times. "I was possessed by the idea and the inspiration for so long, it was so clear and important and the center of my creative life for years. Letting go of an intense project like that can be a little rudderless, a little unmoored."
"Purlie Victorious" is also Odom's debut as a Broadway producer — a role he took as seriously as that of Purlie himself, especially given the struggles many plays now face in finding an audience. Seated in the living room of his Los Angeles home, his Grammy and Tony trophies among his children's toys and photos with his
