A tribute or a smear?

Several children of Ray Charles are singing the blues over a new musical at the Pasadena Playhouse about the legendary entertainer.

An attorney for Charles’ relatives said they are upset that “Ray Charles Live! A New Musical,” which opened to mixed reviews last week, highlights Charles’ infidelity and casts a negative light on his life.

“Everybody is pretty outraged,” said Mary Anne den Bok, who is representing his children. “Ray Charles was a genius in many ways, not just musically, and this is just an attempt to exploit him. It does Ray Charles a great disservice, and does not capture any aspect of his real life. If we had our way, the producers would do a complete rewrite.”

The attorney, who is also the mother of one of the singer’s children, has sent a letter to the Playhouse board of directors, voicing the family’s dissatisfaction. On Tuesday, she said that the family is “reviewing its legal options” regarding control of the late performer’s name and image, but “not necessarily in relation to the play.”

The musical, with a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks (“Topdog/Underdog”), was produced by the Pasadena Playhouse with producing partners Stuart Benjamin, Howard and Karen Baldwin, Steve Markoff and Charles’ longtime manager, Joe Adams. Benjamin and the Baldwins were producers on the team that backed the 2004 Oscar-winning biopic “Ray,” which starred Jamie Foxx. Charles’ ex-wife, Della Robinson, as well as other family members, were involved with that film. However, Den Bok said no one in Charles’ family was consulted for the musical.

In an interview, Playhouse artistic director Sheldon Epps, who staged the production, said Parks consulted a number of individuals close to Charles, including friends; former members of Charles’ backup singers, the Raylettes; as well as an assistant and one of Charles’ valets.

“I don’t have any feelings about the letter,” Epps said. “I would simply say that Suzan-Lori Parks and all involved, including the company and myself, did a great deal of research into Ray’s life. . . . It is certainly our attempt to present a loving and respectful tribute to Mr. Charles.”

Parks declined to comment, referring questions to Ray Musical, the underlying rights holders to “Ray Charles Live!” A statement issued Tuesday from the company said in part: “With reference to comments from the relatives of Ray Charles about the show, Ray Musical LLC has been advised that the portrayals of those relatives are in conformance with publicly available news and historical accounts about Ray Charles and are in no way an invasion of their privacy or defamatory to any of them.”

“Ray Charles Live!” revolves around the late singer returning to a studio to record one last album, during which he is joined by friends and family. Many of Charles’ most famous songs, including “Born to Lose” and “Unchain My Heart,” are sung by characters in response to his often shabby treatment.

Den Bok said she and four other family members saw a preview performance of the musical prior to its Friday opening, which was attended by several celebrities, including Taylor Hackford, the director of the film “Ray.” Den Bok said the family attended the performance without telling producers.

After seeing the performance, Den Bok wrote a letter to the Playhouse board, saying, in part, “Ray Charles, in this production, is a one-dimensional character whose womanizing takes precedence over all else.”

The family was particularly upset over a scene in which Charles meets the queen of England. The singer, played by Brandon Victor Dixon, uses his “Braille” method of checking out women -- caressing their wrists and arms -- when he meets the queen. “The choice to depict Ray Charles as a buffoon . . . is just one of many tasteless moments in the play,” Den Bok wrote.

Charles’ charitable work and his achievements are given short shrift in the production, she said. “It is very sad to see him treated with such disrespect.”

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