Actress Patrice Jean-Baptiste shines in 'Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous'

Patrice Jean-Baptiste is mesmerizing in one of her best roles yet.

​The long-time actress has taken on challenging characters of late – Abasiama in "Her Portmanteau" (2025) and Wiletta Mayer in Lyric Stage’s "Trouble in Mind" (2024). Now, she portrays Anna Campbell, an aging actress who is simultaneously brilliant and awful in Lyric Stage’s “Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous” (through April 12). And Jean-Baptiste is fantastically convincing.

In this production of Pearl Cleage’s play, Anna is staging a comeback in the U.S. after decades spent abroad. However, the role she’s most known for – reciting the monologues from the male characters in August Wilson’s “Fences” while nude – is not hers to reprise. Only, she doesn’t know that at first. Anna’s original work, dubbed “Naked Wilson,” is scheduled to be portrayed by a younger, less experienced performer, Precious “Pete” Watson (Yasmeen Duncan), whose background gives Anna pause. Pete is handpicked for the “Naked Wilson” show, which is the anchor performance in a festival produced by Kate Hughes (Deannah Drip Blemur).

Jean-Baptiste seems drawn to complex characters making difficult choices. As Abasiama in “Her Portmanteau,” her character’s decision to send her daughter to Nigeria and let her ex-husband raise the child has serious consequences she must face decades later. In “Trouble in Mind” (a 1950s-era play within a play), Jean-Baptiste’s Wiletta Mayer is set to act on Broadway in a show about Black people in the Jim Crow South who want to vote. While eager to take on such a big stage, Wiletta disagrees with how her character is portrayed. So, she must decide to either play that game that’s required to keep the role, or to stand up for what she believes in.

In “Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous,” Anna must decide whether to stand in the way of this young performer who is keen to forge her own path, or to become an elder who provides guidance and support. Much of the show is about Anna wrestling with her own anxieties, insecurities and the decisions she’s made — good and bad — about her artistry.

Cleage’s work feels like a commentary on aging, legacy and respectability politics. With Jacqui Parker’s excellent direction, along with the work of the cast and crew, Cleage’s narrative comes alive in a way that still feels relevant, even if one disagrees with the framework the characters might move within. ​

The show has a lot to say about the silencing of women, a key motivator for Anna creating “Naked Wilson.” However, Anna, high on her horse of elite artistry, doesn’t realize she’s become the very thing she was so angry about when she first performed her seminal work. As Anna locks horns with Pete, the two wage their own mini-war. Anna aims to stymie Pete’s performance, and Pete shows her tenacity and teeth with her own creative antics.

There’s quite a bit of sparring between the two, and it’s a joy to watch these two talented actresses face off. However, it’s not a perfect play. The actress who portrays Anna’s best friend Betty, Inés de la Cruz, flubbed many a line but recovered quickly. Also, the script doesn’t allow audiences to hear any of Anna’s “Naked Wilson” or see Pete’s idea on how to expound upon the work come to fruition.

Still, it’s a worthy watch. It spurred me to think about the choices one makes – artistic or otherwise – and how it might impact generations to come.

​Lyric Stage’s production of “Angry, Raucous and Shamelessly Gorgeous” runs through April 12.