Black Nativity @ Karamu 12/16 We went to Karamu’s Black Nativity last Friday with the idea of writing about the dancing. Gospel music drove the production but the dancing played an important part. Director / Choreographer Terence M. Greene used 6 dancers from Cleveland School of the Arts as a kind of non-singing chorus. Michael Medcalf and Kathleen Turner of Cleveland Contemporary Dance Theatre portrayed Joseph and Mary.

The dancers and the three pit musicians started Act I with a bang. Greene’s afro-modern choreography really got those kids moving and the effect was electric. From the first the dancers treated the multi-level set by Richard H. Morris, Jr. as an opportunity, not an obstacle.

In “No Room,” Joseph and Mary searched in vain for accommodations in Bethlehem. The singers took the part of innkeepers, who grew progressively more impatient with inquiries. Medcalf and Turner did some partnering and both took solos. Greene’s choreography for Medcalf had more of a vernacular style than CCDT’s Artistic Director, choreographer in residence, and principle dancer usually gives himself and it was nice to see one more thing that he does well.

Black Nativity was our first look at Turner and we were very impressed with her performance. She did full justice to her impressive resume, which includes training in ballet and modern dance and work with some top names in modern dance. We’re looking forward to seeing more of her dancing with CCDT.

Not that it was all pointed feet and pirouettes. Both dancers gave us a feeling for the desperate fix Joseph and Mary were in.

It would have been impossible not to notice identical twins Ryan and Bryan E. Peoples among the dancers. We remembered them as little boys dancing for Bill Wade but now they’re compact young men, seniors at CSA, with acrobatic as well as dance skills.

Act I told the story of the Nativity, with shepherds and three kings. Act II depicted a contemporary worship service beginning with “Praise Him,” which presented an incredibly animated stage picture, with singers and dancers both providing stirring movement. The next number, “More Than Anything,” started slow and quiet and began the second act’s build through half a dozen or so numbers to a finale in which each of the 6 CSA dancers took brief praise dance solos.

Martin Luther King once said that the most segregated moment in America is 10 o’clock Sunday morning. For a couple of melanin-challenged, pagan Buddhists like us, Karamu’s Black Nativity is the best opportunity to participate in the African American religious experience. For there in a spirit of inclusion, artistry and religious conviction shared the stage.

Black Nativity runs thru December 30 at Karamu’s Jelliffe Theatre.

From Cool Cleveland contributors Elsa Johnson and Victor Lucas vicnelsaATearthlink.net

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