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Sir John is an aspiring hip-hop producer with a knack for spoken word and a hauntingly mysterious past. Clifford is a kid running from the pain of domesticity; violence, divorce and life in suburbia. When the two met they struck up an unlikely friendship: Sir John mentors Clifford, teaching him to find his voice through hip-hop and discovers a talent like nothing he’s ever seen. However, the road to stardom is not an easy one. As fame and fortune taunt Clifford (stage name Clay), his dark past weighs him down. Variety called “Clay,” playing at the Kirk Douglas Theatre until Oct. 14, “kick-butt, rhyme-busting musical drama.”
The Orange County Register wrote that “Clay is the kind of phenomenon that dazzles you and whets your appetite.” Tickets are available at www.centertheatre-group.org.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 5, 2007. Read the original PDF.