A Christmas tradition returns after a 10-year hiatus.

by Jas Keimig

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On a rainy, brooding, Thursday evening, a group of actors, musicians, and singers shuffled into the studio beneath Intiman Theatre, chatting with one another and tuning their instruments. “Good evening everyone,” Black Nativity music director Sam Townsend told the group as they settled down, ready for rehearsal to begin. “Keep your feet flat on the floor. Relax your body, relax your mind. You did really great last night and you’ll do really great tonight.”

Led by Townsend, the group launched into a rendition of “Silent Night” in a low register which sounded like snow falling on a cold, wintry night. As they made their way through different songs, Townsend reminded everyone to round their mouths, project, and upkeep their tempo. They had the important task of bringing a historically beloved production back to Seattle.

Tonight for the first time in 10 years, poet Langston Hughes’ Black Nativity will take the stage at Intiman Theatre and run through Dec. 30. Originally premiering off Broadway in 1961, the gospel-play tells the story of the birth of Jesus, transforming Christmas carols using elements from Black gospel music, folk song, liturgical dance, and African-inspired costumes, with an entirely Black cast.

When it first debuted in Seattle in 1998 under the guidance of the late and legendary Pastor Patrinell Wright and Rev. Dr. Samuel McKinney, the gospel-play was a yearly smash and became part of many Seattle families’ holiday traditions. Although Intiman stopped putting on the show in the early 2010s, the demand never quite went away. “Folks start calling as early as the middle of October wanting to get their tickets for Black Nativity,” said Intiman artistic director and Black Nativity scenic designer Jennifer Zeyl. “We haven’t been able to sell those tickets because we haven’t been able to do the show until now.”

Earlier this year, Intiman reached out to lauded director Valerie Curtis-Newton to spearhead bringing back Black Nativity to the city now that they had a permanent, stable home on Harvard Avenue. Curtis-Newton wasn’t involved with the original run but immediately leaped at the opportunity to bring back the spiritual, community-focused production.

“A big thing for us really was that we were coming out of the isolation of COVID and the fact that so many churches had to go to online service and theaters had to do other things,” said Curtis-Newton. “We just got out of rhythm with each other being in the shared space together, so the idea of Black Nativity as an opportunity to gather people felt really important this year.”

Joining her in bringing the play back to the stage is musical director Townsend, an elder at the Greater Glory Ministries, who was the choral director of Black Nativity for 13 years. As well as choreographer Vania C. Bynum, a computer engineer-turned-dancer who also danced in the original run of the show. “To choreograph for [Black Nativity] and see these amazing young dancers come through, I just love it and I’m happy to share our love of the arts and our love of Christ with our community,” said Bynum.

This is the first time all three have worked together on a project and while they emphasized the importance of Wright and McKinney’s version, they say this 2023 rendition is completely reimagined. “We’re not trying to outdo it,” Curtis-Newton stated. “We’re sharing the same material, but it’s going to be different because we’re the ones doing it.” So for the past several months, Curtis-Newton, Townsend, and Bynum have been building upon Hughes’ original 1961 script, sculpting a vision of the Black Nativity that will speak to the current times we live in.

“There’s this idea that we have that we’re starting this play in a different place because of the pandemic, because of the strife in the world right now,” said Curtis-Newton. “We’re starting with a little bit of drama and tension as we’re telling the story and we want to end in a place of joy and celebration. That’s the arc of it, which might be a little different for some people and what folks are used to.”

This version of Black Nativity is intimate — there are 16 singers, six dancers, five actors, and four musicians. “It’s a more crisp presentation,” noted Townsend. The performers are a diverse range of ages, with the youngest singer being 15 and the oldest in their 60s. Shaunyce Omar — who starred in the original production — is returning as the Narrator, with Esther Okech as the Woman, Felicia Loud as the Old Woman, Yusef Seevers as the Elder/Narrator/Shepard, and Jarron A. Williams as the Man/Shepard.

Curtis-Newton, Townsend, and Bynum were tight-lipped about the specifics of design elements and song choices, wanting certain elements and details to be revealed for the first time onstage as a surprise for the audience. “Through Valerie’s direction, I’m seeing things — literally — for the first time,” said Townsend. “It’s not an old play we’re doing over; to me, it feels completely brand new and fresh.”

And in taking it on, both Intiman and the creative team intend on keeping Black Nativity a yearly tradition. “If it’s only done once every three or four years, or once every eight years or twice a decade, it doesn’t hold the same gravitational pull,” said Curtis-Newton. “But when people know that it’s going to happen year after year, then it’s like, I can bring my kids now, I can bring my neighbor.”

“I appreciate the idea that we get to share the joy of when Black people are with each other. We can share it with each other and we can also allow other people to witness it. One of the reasons I’m an artist is because I want to allow everyone to fall as much in love with Black people as I am,” she continued. “So that means showing us in our joy, showing us in our faith, showing us in our distress, showing us as a fully-rounded person and allowing other people to see that and to recognize their humanity in me.”

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Black Nativity premieres tonight, Dec. 12, at Intiman Theatre and runs through Dec. 30. Get your tickets on Intiman’s website.

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📸 Featured Image: The cast of “Black Nativity” at a recent table reading. (Photo: Susan Fried)

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