Theater
August, 1972
In Aint Supposed to Die a Natural Death, Melvin Van Peebles showed urban blacks confined in a ghetto athrob with passion and life. His people were down and fighting to get up. The play was resonant with the feel of the city, splendidly staged by Gilbert Moses and acted and sung by a resolutely expressive cast. Van Peebles' second musical of the season, Dont Play Us Cheap!, is the other, sunnier side of the urban street. These people, joyfully imbibing and joshing one another at a Harlem party, a...
