The Amen Corner – Play – The Williams Project

Elevator Thoughts (aka Tweet): The Amen Corner play w/ music by The Williams Project & Langston Seattle at Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute. Good critique on toxic hypocritical church piety & condemnation. Religious interjections & rich pure black voices were a delight. Love seeing a good unraveling on stage. The audience attended in their Sunday best! #POC #religion #mutiny #BiPOC

Synopsis from the Theatre: In a storefront church in Harlem, Sister Margaret’s fierce piety inspires both devotion and fear in her congregation. But when a figure from her past returns, and her son starts looking for answers outside the church door, Sister Margaret finds her standing in danger. As secrets emerge and loyalties are tested, Sister Margaret must fight for her family, her flock, and ultimately, her faith. Equal parts soaring music, prophetic poetry, and gripping family drama, The Amen Corner asks audiences to face the beautiful and frightening path that leads to liberation. And gives space to, as Baldwin says, “let the church say Amen.”

Reviewed Performance Date: 11/3/22 Evening

Type: Play

World Premiere: No

Live Band: No

Recommendation: See it! Especially if you grew up in a Christian church.

Would I See It Again 3 Years from Now?: Yes

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4.75 stars

Equity Actors: 6 out of 9. First professional production of this play in Seattle!

Rant(s)

• The bedroom and kitchen was confusing. Where they located in the same building as the church?
• I’m not sure if the production budget could afford this or if it was an intentional creative decision but the folding chairs needed to be replaced with real church pews.
• The churchgoers somehow needed better stage blocking. I don’t want to see the back of their heads! To be fair, I admit that it’s difficult to avoid this with a church stage.

Other Rave(s)

• Sister Boxer (Felicia Loud) has a lovely voice. I could listen to her talk or sing all day.
• Powerful stern fierce pastor portrayal by Maiya Reaves
• Nice background gospel music before performance and during intermission.
• Favorite line was something an old man said to the effect of “no woman has ever touched me.”

Other Thought(s)

• Where were my BiPOC brothas and sistas? This is the first time I’ve attended Langston Seattle (albeit only 3 times total) where non-POCs were the majority in the audience. The subject matter was even about a black church! Leave a comment on my social media links below if you have any theories.

Theatre Company : The Williams Project

Venue: Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute

Venue Physical Address: 104 17th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98144

Price: Cheap w/ Pay-what-you-can Options

Dates: November 2-20, 2022

Seating: General Admission

Parking and Cost: Free lot parking or free street parking.

Social Media Posts: Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube

Link(s):

• https://www.thewilliamsproject.org/amen-corner

Cast and Production Team: Under the video.

Other Video +/- Pictures: Photography in video and under video are by Michael B. Maine.

@showsiveseen “The #Amen Corner” #play w/ music by The Williams Project at Langston Seattle. Good critique on toxic hypocritical #church piety & condemnation. #Religious interjections & rich pure #black voices were a delight. Love seeing a good unraveling on stage. The audience attended in their Sunday best! Review & Photo Credit: showsiveseen.com/1887 #poc #religion #mutiny #BiPOC #theatre ♬ original sound – Shows I've Seen

Role	Name
Brother Boxer	Holiday
Sister Boxer	Felicia Loud
Sister Moore	Anjelica McMillan
Margaret	Maiya Reaves
Odessa	Cathleen Riddley
Luke	Adrian Roberts
Brother Davis	Malcolm J. West
David	Dimitri Woods
Sister Ida Jackson	Amaya Zhané
———-	———-
Playwright	James Baldwin
Director	Reggie D. White
Music Director	Aaron M. Davis Norman
Set and Costume Designer	An-lin Dauber
Props Designer	Robert J. Aguilar
Lighting Designer	Robin Macartney
Stage Manager	P. Alyda Sorm
Production Manager	Kyle Hartmann
Technical Director	Justin Duffiance