Don't Play Us Cheap is a 1973 American musical comedy film written, produced, scored, edited and directed by Melvin Van Peebles. The film stars Avon Long and Joe Keyes Jr. as Brother Dave and Trinity, a pair of demons who take human form to break up a house party thrown by Miss Maybell (Esther Rolle), an African American woman, in honor of her niece Earnestine (Rhetta Hughes), who is celebrating her 20th birthday in Harlem. Trinity's devotion to his mission comes into question when he falls in love with Earnestine. Don't Play Us Cheap was part of a diptych with Van Peebles' stage musical, Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death, which presented a darker vision of African American life compared to the lighter portrayal in Don't Play Us Cheap.