Beat the Bluez for One More Night

"Back in the days when I was a teenager / Before I had status and before I had a pager / You could find the abstract listenin' to hip-hop / My pops used to say it reminded him of bebop / I said well Daddy don't you know things go in cycles..." — Q-Tip

Tonight is the last of four performances of Zell Miller III's B-Boy Bluez, 8 p.m. at the Vortex. This photographer will admit that we haven't attended a play in a while, but our only regret about Miller's (mostly) solo show is that we didn't see it earlier so that we could recommend it to you sooner.

Not being a theater critic, we speak only on the authority that we enjoy hip hop, especially from the early '90s, and Miller draws so heavily from the period to concoct his mix of song, spoken word, and monologue that maybe we were biased in his favor from the start. But his performance flows perfectly. The funny stuff at the beginning seamlessly gives way to deeper topics without ever losing steam, or the humor. Miller's performance never falters even as his narrative switches gears, and the entire piece is tied together with an impressive cohesion. Simply put: see this play.

The opening act, Maggie Gallant's Hot Dogs at the Eiffel Tower, is very different but worth seeing, as well.

B-Boy Bluez
8 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 26
The Vortex
2307 Manor Rd.

Short video clip from Miller's intro below the Expand-o-Tron.