Quijada & Robinson Display Sensational Musicianship

by Joseph Mutti

“Mexodus” provides a lesson in humanity among people who are seemingly powerless. Two men, an escaped African American slave and a Mexican soldier, choose to resist enmity, even in the face of huge personal losses.

The story takes us back to the days of slavery, at the time when Texas seized part of Mexico by war. The town of Victory, Mexico suddenly became Victory, Texas—and, by default, a slave state.

Henry, an escaped Texan slave, survives his perilous crossing the Rio Grande River to seek refuge in Mexico. He is given shelter by Carlos, a Mexican farm worker and ex-soldier. whose sympathy is sparked after he previously discovered the body of a drowned slave boy.

Nygel D. Robinson (Henry) and Brian Quijada (Carlos) narrate the story with a unique hip-hop performance about this little-known southern escape route. The history of the Texas to Mexico or Southern Underground Railroad gives the two writers/actors/musicians the inspiration for “Mexodus.”

Scenic designer Riw Rakkulchon has constructed a big, rustic barn filled with farm implements and musical instruments. The impressive structure is hip-hop wallpapered with shifting visual projections of Carlos and Henry’s lifelong struggles, as their hidden stories unfold. The two are brilliant musicians who tell the secret history of suffering, escape, and re-birth through original music and songs.

At enormous risk to himself from a cross-border posse seeking Henry, Carlos hides the intruder. Even though Henry has a huge $1500 reward on his head, Carlos makes the dangerous decision to help him in an act of profound solidarity.

Henry and Carlos describe their lives to each other through remarkably eclectic live music creation on stage. They employ sounds from farm tools, synthesizers, guitars, and any random object that comes to hand. Their inventiveness, singing, and hip hop rhythms are brilliant and original.

Combined with guitar and piano riffs, the duo imaginatively “loop” the sounds into multilayered, melodic backgrounds for their rapping. They use foot pedals scattered across the stage to elaborate new sounds. These repeated chords give extra energy and drama to their stories of suffering and loss.

In a pre-performance interview, Quijada asserts that the looping technique “is the future of American theater. It HAS to be hip-hop, it’s such an effective form of relaying intense emotion, intense frustration.”

Their mutual musical wizardry also makes the staging of “Mexodus” accessible to young people who are not yet familiar with traditional plays. After seeing the show, my Mexican-born 14-year-old granddaughter said she enjoyed the production very much, and learned a lot of new history about her two countries.

Given the ongoing U.S./Mexico border crisis—ironically in the reverse direction from the Southern Underground Railway—Quijada and Robinson expose the injustice and inequality that underlie the Mexican American story.

Audiences young and not-so-young are enjoying the unique musical collaboration between two superb musicians and singers. Heartily recommended.

 

“Mexodus” by Brian Quijada & Nygel D. Robinson, directed by David Mendizábal, scenic design by Riw Rakkulchon, costumes by David Mendizábal, lighting by Mextly Couzin, sound by Mikhail Fiksel, projections by Rasean Davonté Johnson, at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Info: berkeleyrep.org – to October 20, 2024.

Cast: Brian Quijada & Nygel D. Robinson.

Banner photo: Nygel D. Robinson & Brian Quijada. Photos by Ben Krantz Studio