In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat – 16 September 2026

In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat is a clear example of the disorientingly startling effect when poetry in motion stops moving. In this tremendous, touching tribute, Roger Guenveur Smith paints a poetic picture of Basquiat that is vivacious and alive. Smith’s feet are planted firmly in place at a microphone, and the motion in his body is almost entirely restricted to above the waist. He is, in a sense, a rock, refusing to bend or break despite the loss of a dear friend. His narration through the story paints vivid pictures of specific moments, rather than an overall overview of Basquiat’s life, and the lighting (Arlo Sanders) infuses these moments with color and movement, essentially creating the world the play inhabits. Live sound design (Marc Anthony Thompson) adds its own striking contributions, including highlighting how long the audience should dwell in certain moments.

In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat is unique in that it is a fully realized production with very few collaborators. In this case, it heightens the experience, as each participant is giving fully of themself and the importance of the production doesn’t get lost in the creative pipeline. The show is not informational, it is deeply emotional and while it never loses sight of Basquiat as an artist, he’s painted first and foremost as a friend– a young man who colored outside the lines and approached the world with verve. This team is clearly determined to let the piece itself be a work of art, not a historical preservation of Basquiat’s life. Warhol is name dropped only once. 

As an audience member, I didn’t learn anything about Basquiat’s life, except that I got the feeling in my body that Smith gave in his body– the sense of a beautiful, colorful world in motion suddenly and inextricably stopped. The experience burns with intensity and fervor, and when it concludes, something lingers– the feeling that a light has gone out somewhere and though we are not plunged into darkness, we must adjust to the changes in our perception. In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat engulfed and overwhelmed me in its sincerity, its poetry, and its outcry. It’s a stark reminder that everything you have can be swallowed up and taken from you. It’s a cacophony of platonic love showing how intertwined human lives are and how shattering it is to lose someone who is a significant part of the fabric of your world. It does not call upon us to change our ways, but rather to notice and cherish the effect we have on others. When Basquiat overdosed, he left behind loved ones (including Smith) who cherished the time they had with him– not his work, not his art, but him as a person. In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat is an outpouring of that love and a truly worthy piece of theatrical magic that captures a picture not of a man, but of a life.

I attended this performance on a press pass from The Press Room.