After Seeing JTP's Black Nativity in Concert, All This Reviewer Can Say Is, "Wowwie Wow Wow!"

This article was published in the Triangle Review on 12 December 2022.

I had the privilege of going to The Justice Theater Project's 2022 production of Langston Hughes' Black Nativity: A Gospel Christmas Musical Experience in Concerton Sunday, Dec 11th, at the Mount Calvary United Church of Christ in Durham; and can I just say: Wowwie Wow Wow!

I was disappointed that I couldn't make one of the two performances on Saturday, Dec 10th, in the Joseph M. Bryan Jr. Amphitheater at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh; but now I'm grateful to have been a part of it at the church where this year's production originated, Mt. Calvary UCC, which hosted its performance on Dec 11th.

Mt. Calvary UCC was founded in 1893 in a small three-room house in a poverty-stricken community. The church has had only four senior pastors, demonstrating the sincere community that it has embodied since its inception. The the church's current senior pastor, the Rev. Ray Watkins, teamed up with Dr. Asabi (Stephanie M. Howard), chair of the Theatre Department at North Carolina Central University, to create this year's soaring, heartfelt 45-minute gospel performance of the Nativity of Jesus Christ, including "nine soloists, West African and contemporary dance, a live band, and vibrant costumes." I had never been to a Black religious celebration in a historically Black church, featuring gospel music performed by Black singers before; and I couldn't wait to go.

Nobody in my family wanted "to go to church," despite my insistence that this would be drastically different from any church service that I'd ever forced them to sit through (I was raised Roman Catholic). So, I drove alone to this southwest area of Durham that I'd never seen before, a little nervous about not knowing anyone and sticking out in the crowd.

As the church came into view, the street was lined with bumper-to-bumper cars, both parked on the sides and trying to move down the center. A man in a sharp gray suit stood in the middle of the road in front of the church, directing the people who rolled down their windows to ask where to park. Church volunteers were shuttling people from the parking lot of another church a block or so away, he said, making the welcome and hospitality of this church community immediately apparent and my nervousness disappear.

I took my seat at the back of the church, which was completely full by the time that the performers completed their first scene. The Black Nativity Dancers (Lydia Banuelos, Rayven Day, Aisha S. Horton, Rondejia King, Frankie Lee III, Travyon Lovely, Destinee Mackey, and Robert McCreary) moved down the aisle and onto the stage with graceful immediacy as they reconstructed the choreography of Kristi V. Johnson and Toya Chinfloo, propelled by West-African drumming (by Bashir Shakur and Ayinde Hurrey) that shook the entire building.

The ensuing musical accompaniment, which was directed and contained arrangements by the Rev. Ray Watkins, included bass guitar (Thurman Woods), organ (Chucky Robinson), keyboard (Watkins), and percussion (Montrel Parker) that merged African rhythms with blues and jazz in a way that no other church that I've ever attended could replicate. Meanwhile, costume designer Lydia Houston's choice of the dancers' flowing white vestements made the colorful West-African clothing of the other participants especially bright and joyful.

The Justice Theater Project presented Black Nativity in Concert at 4 p.m. Dec. 11th at Mount Calvary United Church of Christ in Durham

I only have a list of the singers (Karen Alston, Jadah Barber, Kimberly Britt, Taufiki Lee, Tiffany Little, Beverly Ann Love, Tyonda Love, Dottie Middleton, Carter Minor, Marvin Outlaw, Haven Powell, and Tamisha Waden), so I can't accurately attribute the songs performed by all of the soloists, which is a shame because each one deserves accolades. That said, I literally got chills as each solo evolved into the harmoniously soulful chorus created by all the singers and, by the end of the production, the standing and swaying audience.

The deep harmony in "No Roof" following Marvin Outlaw's soul-wrenching solo of "You're Here" was spine tingling; and the circle of inward-leaning women simulating the rhythms of Mary's birth and culminating in the presentation of the Christ child, Lion King like, was moving in many ways. Taufiki Lee's performance of "O Holy Night" could rival the version by Smokey Robinson.

"Oh Come Let Us Adore Him," "Joy to the World," "Go Tell it on the Mountain," "How Excellent Is My God," "Joyful Joyful" -- the rapid-fire, on-your-feet gospel music just kept coming, and I found myself wanting to purchase a CD, so I could listen to it again in my car on the way home.

By the end of the performance, I was standing and swaying with the rest of the audience. The Black Nativity experience was a revival that I couldn't resist taking part in. Next year, I'm taking my mother.

Note to the Producers: I only wish that the sound system had not been overmodulated on the vocals, as I often could not hear the soloists' beautiful voices over the amplified distortion.

Note to Those Who Missed Black Nativity in Concert: Although there are no more performances of The Justice Project's Black Nativity in Concert this year, fortunately there is a public YouTube video of some of the highlights of the 2022 performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2RQN93OKWQ.