McCraney’s characters do occasionally know things beyond themselves; they may not exist merely in the here and now. Ogun, Oshoosi, and Elegba are all the names of Yoruba orishas—Ogun is the deity of iron and war, Oshoosi is associated with the hunt, and the trickster Elegba opens the gates between worlds. As the three men narrate their story, they also dance (Juel D. Lane is the choreographer), leaping over one another or lining up for a synchronized number—part polyrhythmic stepping, part game of tag—accompanied by an onstage drummer (Munir Zakee). Sometimes the characters speak their own stage directions and offer their own metaphors. “Elegba enters, drifting, like the moon,” Mays says of his character’s gleaming and magnetic presence, which exerts a pull on Oshoosi that waxes and wanes.journey-inline-newsletterinline-newsletter