If you have been missing out on experiencing Passinart: A Theatre Company‘s take on Black Nativity — as I have — this is the year to make it part of your holiday festivities. No matter what your faith tradition or background, it’s a joyous and generous offering of Black Joy that will stir your soul and lift your spirits. 

But you’ll need to act fast — its compact, two-weekend run ends on December 7.

Founded in 1982, PassinArt is the oldest continuously producing Black theater company in Oregon, dedicated to passing along art, history, and culture from generation to generation (hence the name).  Every time I’ve seen a PassinArt show, I’ve been struck by the depth of talent in the Black community in Oregon; the quality of its productions is consistently first-rate, even without the resources of other companies. Its work embodies dedication that persists — in part because PassinArt’s players have a wealth of experience to draw upon and pass on. They are the harp that brings other instruments into tune.

PassinArt’s production of Black Nativity fits neatly in that tradition. Created by Langston Hughes and first performed in 1961, Black Nativity is an adaptation of the Nativity story performed mostly in song and dance. It has become a tradition in many American cities — including in Portland, where PassinArt first began mounting children’s productions of the show in the 1990s. It began adult productions in 2014, first in churches, then (after a pandemic pause) at downtown’s Brunish Theater. This year you can see it at Alberta Abbey, a larger but still intimate space.

A Seattle reviewer a few years back suggested approaching a production of Black Nativity as you would approach visiting one of the great cathedrals of Europe — no matter what (if any) faith tradition you observe, Black Nativity invites you in, ready to inspire. It will move you to connect with something deeper, no matter what you feel about Christianity. It engages with ideas and stories central to Christianity, as experienced through an African American lens, but you may enter as you are. It welcomes you to share in communal joy and celebration and solidarity. 

It’s not a typical musical, though it includes a depiction of the story of the birth of Jesus through acting, song, and dance. Hughes wrote the book from an intent to portray the Christmas story through the lens of Black experience, incorporating poetry and narration and re-conceived versions of traditional carols and Christmas songs as well as songs written for the show. You will feel like you are in church, but better — it reminded me of being in church (a complicated experience for me) but more like how I wish church more often were, full of joy, celebrating and welcoming difference, and free of judgment and shame.

The cast is packed full of talent — each singer is featured at least once in the show, and collectively they are an inspiring choir that will make you want to move and to sing along. The sheer variety of voices feels surprising given how well they blend — and there is variety, too, in physical bearing among the cast members that feels rich and joyous. 

Sponsor

Noted designer Wanda Walden, whose work is regularly seen on local stages and is PassinArt’s resident costumer, has designed costumes that celebrate the individuality of the cast members, and keep you basking in visual delights. The first act arrays them in a colorful blend of African and African-American prints and embellishments; in the second, cast members don more formal black, with regal accents and colorful fans. 

The show is directed by Jerry Foster, PassinArt’s longtime artistic director, with music direction by JerMichael Riley and choreography by Kemba Shannon. The music arrangements are endlessly inventive, breathing new energy into songs you may love and even songs you may have tired of, spicing them with soul and gospel and R&B and jazz. (Their version of The Hallelujah Chorus in the second act is worth the price of admission all by itself, and this is the first version of The Little Drummer Boy that I have enjoyed in I don’t know how long.) The choreography, too, infuses whimsy and delight and deep feeling into so many songs, including flourishes that range in complexity while incorporating all the cast in embodied celebration. 

This is work that deserves an audience, especially one ready to learn, move, and listen. So much talent, offered with such intention, is beyond what many of us would even know to ask for. Since it’s been given, my advice is to grasp it. 

Black Nativity   

• Company: PassinArt: A Theatre Company
• Where: Alberta Abbey, 126 N.E. Alberta St., Portland
• Remaining performances: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5; 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6; 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7
• Ticket information: Here