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Boston Globe
15-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Hats off to Moonbox's stirring ‘Crowns'
Kaedon Gray and Janelle Grace in "Crowns." Chelcy Garrett The narrative is slender — and, truth be told, sometimes disappears altogether. But the story being told is rich and deep, extending back to Africa, to the Middle Passage, to 2½ centuries of slavery in America, and to the vital, sustaining role of song through it all. Advertisement Mother Shaw (Mildred E. Walker), one of the congregants at the church where 'Crowns' takes place, traces the historical roots of flamboyant hats, saying: 'Church was the only place slaves were allowed to congregate. And after slavery there were 'Whites Only' signs everywhere. So if you had something you wanted to show off and be in style, you'd wear it to church.' Advertisement Mildred E. Walker and Mirrorajah in "Crowns." Chelcy Garrett At the center of 'Crowns' is a young woman named Yolanda, played by Mirrorajah. Originally from Brooklyn, Yolanda has been sent down South to live with her grandmother after her brother was killed. Yolanda's hat of choice is a ballcap, worn backward or to the side. At first, she rolls her eyes and sneers 'Head rags' as the assembled church congregants speak about the transformative power of hats and of gospel song — and then proceed to demonstrate that power. They speak, too, of how gospel song can be an accessory to flirtation, or a prod to remembrance, or glue for a family. Making that case, along with Mother Shaw, are Mabel (Cortlandt Barrett), Jeanette (Janelle Grace), Velma (Lovely Hoffman), Wanda (Cheryl D. Singleton), and a character identified only as Man (Kaedon Gray). Costume designer E Rosser should also be considered one of the stars of this 'Crowns,' having attired the seven-member cast in a spectacular array of broad-brimmed hats and outfits that are bursting with color. Key contributions come also from conductor David Freeman Coleman, on the keyboard, and Brandon Mayes, on drums. 'Crowns' features two dozen musical numbers, most of them traditional gospel songs, but extending to jazz, blues, and hip-hop, including 'In the Morning,' 'When the Saints Go Marching In,' 'Mary, Don't You Weep,' 'Marching to Zion,' 'Take Me to the Water,' 'I'm Gonna Roll On,' 'Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around,' and, of course, 'I Got a Crown.' 'Crowns' is the sixth Advertisement Within that space, a line from 'His Eye Is on the Sparrow' is particularly resonant: 'I sing because I'm happy/ I sing because I'm free.' CROWNS Play by Regina Taylor. Adapted from the book by Michael Cunningham and Craig Marberry. Directed by Regine Vital. Music directed by David Coleman. Associate directed by Davron Monroe. Presented by Moonbox Productions. At Arrow Street Arts, Cambridge. Through May 4. Tickets $55. At Don Aucoin can be reached at
Boston Globe
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
‘Conference of the Birds' aims high, but struggles in flight
Context is aided by projection designer David Bengali and calligraphic artist Pouya Jahan's eye-popping visuals panning across three screens; most vivid are the feathery white shapes that coalesce and dissolve, a galaxy of stars becoming birds streaking across the sky. The multilevel set of platforms and scaffolds allows the dancers to animate the stage in many directions at once, perching one moment, falling into waiting arms another. The episodic musical score (by Shaw Pong Liu, Sandy Singh, and Shaho Andalibi) is a kind of rambling, kaleidoscopic sound collage that reinforces the international embrace, reflecting an array of musical sources and influences. Advertisement But while ambitious and heartfelt, 'Conference of the Birds' is ultimately too fractured and busy, a lot of running without going anywhere and it seldom settles enough to let us really appreciate details and small moments, to process what we're seeing. Who are these characters, and what exactly might be going on? (The dim lighting throughout doesn't help.) Though the printed program expansively delineates the story and the seven valleys through which the characters trek (the Valley of Insight into Mystery, the Valley of Bewilderment, etc.) it's not a cohesive narrative arc that viewers can easily follow in the dance, and when we lose that thread, the work becomes murky. The journey feels wearing, too slow-moving, too much of the same. There is precious little momentum or rhythmic drive. Advertisement The work's most literal section deals with immigration and degradation. A line of dancers form a wall over which one brave soul tries repeatedly to climb. Another confronts a line of marchers, none of whom respond to her wordless pleas. A circle forms, trapping someone inside. A couple is unceremoniously pulled apart, like a parent separated from a child. Gradually, one by one, dancers begin removing bits of clothing before falling lifelessly to the floor. One retches grotesquely for far too long. We get it. But as the dancers rouse, they gradually find connection and commonality with one another. Seated across the stage, legs entwined, they bow and stretch, arms reaching forward and back, up in supplication, into the chest in reverence. By the end, they are birds again, flocking calmly, breathing into suspensions as if to hold the air. And the final vignette packs a punch. The nine dancers come together as one, their multiple outstretched arms gracefully flowing together as the wings of a single powerful bird. ANIKAYA DANCE THEATER At Arrow Street Arts, Saturday (through March 9) Karen Campbell can be reached at
