When the Ensemble Theatre does drama right, it’s a thing of theatrical beauty.
Usually, this means they’ve blessed us with one of the company’s consistently superlative August Wilson productions or perhaps a Dominique Morrisseau jewel. Big names from the northern U.S. whose work pays homage to the cities and states they hail from.
With Camp Logan, however, Ensemble has gone hometown hard with a story, playwright and director whose deep roots in Houston combine to give us one of the most affecting, muscular and gorgeously realized shows we’ll surely see this season.
Celeste Bedford Walker’s historic play takes us back to 1917 Jim Crow Houston when the soldiers of the 3rd Battalion of the all-Black 24th Infantry Regiment arrive in town to guard the construction of the Camp Logan training base (located in today’s Memorial Park by Crestwood). A pitstop, they believed, en route to fight the Germans in WWI and prove themselves as men, as Americans and hopefully begin to move the needle on racial acceptance/respect.
Houstonians were having none of it. The white ones, that is.
From the minute the soldiers set up camp, they experienced racist hostility, tension and threats of violence from the white residents despite the Battalion’s stellar military reputation/loyal service. The Army itself did little to quell the situation, instead stripping Black soldiers and MPs of duties and privileges to quell public fears. It all boiled over on August 23, 1917, when, learning a white mob was coming for them, the Black soldiers took up arms, clashing with police and civilians, many of whom perished at the soldier’s hands.
In the aftermath of the riot, the United States Army convicted 110 of the soldiers of murder, mutiny and other crimes. Nineteen soldiers were executed, making it the largest mass execution of American soldiers by the Army.
The point being, as Walker shows us, the 3rd Battalion’s real enemy wasn’t the Germans; after all, it was white racist America.
It’s the showing, or lack of it here, that makes Camp Logan so compelling and simultaneously successful in breaking the rules.
This is a story about harassment and violence, yet we see none of it. Instead, we hear about the racial viciousness and its deadly aftermath through the conversations/retellings of Camp Logan’s five soldiers and their sergeant back at their barracks (a hauntingly sparse set design by Philip Graschel).
Show, don’t tell is an oft-tossed-out theater critic’s barb, a rule for good storytelling. But here, it’s irrelevant, thanks to Walker’s endlessly charismatic characters and their deliciously dense and tangent-ridden dialogue. Of equal import is Director Allie Woods, Jr.’s surehanded spotlight-shining direction and a cast that deserves every accolade we can throw at them.
In other words, Walker has written an actor’s play and it’s through them that history is brought to vivid, disturbing life.
Joe Moses (a terrifically indignant Kendrick “Kay B” Brown) hails from the North and is repulsed by the treatment of Blacks in the Southern states. His quick temper and nose-thumbing at the Jim Crow laws we know won’t end well. Quick with a joke and even quicker to go after the ladies, Gweely Brown (Roc Living with an irresistible eye twinkle) knows a thing or two about life for a Black man in Houston, his hometown.
Hailing from New Orleans, where he experienced unspeakable racial torture, Jaque Boogaloosa Honore (a stealthfully heart-breaking Tanner Thomas Ellis) is perpetually low on cash and trying to borrow but beloved by the men nonetheless. Charged with being an MP for the troop, Robert Franciscus (a smoothly straight Kristopher Adams) eschews his buddy’s mischief-making, devoted as he is to a minister’s daughter. The rookie of the crew Charles Hardin (a perfectly earnest Elia Adams), hasn’t seen much first-hand racism, growing up a curiosity as one of only two Black families in Minnesota. A volunteer with a college education, he’s the most optimistic about race relations of the bunch.
Sure, these men are archetypes and had Walker not infused their dialogue with so much character development ebb and flow, they might not have bloomed so fully. It also doesn’t hurt that Director Woods allows each character their moment without being precious, often interrupting monologues before they veer into speechifying. Throw outstanding performances into that soup and archetypes be damned – we fall for all of them equally.
Despite the men’s different backgrounds and attitudes, they all want the same thing: to fight in France against the Germans and ultimately to right the wrongs thrust upon them in Houston. We watch them knowing that none of their dreams will come true, yet we hope against hope for them regardless.
Overseeing these men are Walker’s two most cleverly crafted characters, the seen-it-all, no-nonsense, play-by-the-rules career soldier, Sgt. McKinney (Jason E. Carmichael showing great command) and his superior Captain Kuelke (an effectively self-serving Foster Davis).
In McKinney, Walker paints a complex portrait of a Black man caught between proud duty, a chain of command, an army willing to put him and his men in peril, and what he knows to be correct. His struggle is at the heart of the play, as are the decisions he faces when things come to a boil.
With Zuelke, Walker gives us a villain for sure, but it’s how she delivers him that lands. What’s more insidious, an outwardly racist white man whose intentions are clear or a white man who fancies himself a friend to his Black soldiers? A self-proclaimed savior, capable of some good deeds towards his Black charges for sure, yet willing and able to put them in their place at best and throw them to the wolves at worst. All for his edification. Walker may have written this play in 1987, but if there was ever an example of “fake woke,” this is it.
Characters are nothing if they don’t appear and move like the part, and in this realm, too, Camp Logan excels. Krystal Uchem’s army uniforms are perfectly starched. Look at the impressive dimples on the sergeant’s felt hat and the buttery leather holster on the captain and know that costume details have been meticulous.
As are the military directions, thanks to consultants Captain Paul Mathews and Winston Savice Jr. These onstage soldiers come correct. Add in Kelvin L. Hamilton’s fight direction, and this is a show that packs as realistic a punch as you can get.
By the time we hit that fateful evening, our hearts are pounding with anticipation. This is a history play, so we’re aware how awry it goes. Director Woods knows this too, but darn if he doesn’t exquisitely pace things so that for a couple of moments, we think it may be different this time.
Or maybe it will take until 2023 to overturn the convictions of the 110 Black soldiers charged with mutiny and assault when the Army finally acknowledges the wrongs of the racially biased trials. A fact that takes place long after this show was written. But a good thing to keep in mind as you simmer in your seat.
Camp Logan continues through February 23 at The Ensemble Theatre, 3535 Main. For more information, call 713-520-0055 or visit ensembletheatre.com. $35-$50.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.
