June 24-30, 2004

theater

Crowns

SING OUT!: Gretha Boston (foreground) leads the cast of Crowns to gospel glory at the Prince.

by David Anthony Fox

Just over an hour into Crowns, time stands still. The radiant Gretha Boston lifts her voice in an a cappella version of "His Eye Is On The Sparrow," and the audience offers the ultimate compliment: rapt silence.

It's the kind of moment that, if you're very lucky, comes once in several seasons … but damned if Crowns doesn't pull it off again, minutes later! A monologue about a woman caring for her dying father is delivered by Deidrie N. Henry with the simplicity only a great artist can achieve.

Don't misunderstand — each of the actor/singers in the Crowns ensemble cast is magnificent. But Boston and Henry pull off something beyond special. I'll risk a word nearly absent from my critical vocabulary: These moments are perfection.

Crowns closes out the Prince season through pure luck. Gemini, the new musical originally scheduled for this slot, proved not ready for prime time (it is now set to open next season). The Prince folks found Crowns at Seattle's Intiman Theatre, and imported it here.

This is what I call snatching victory from the jaws of defeat!

Crowns is based on an absolutely lovely book by Craig Marberry and Michael Cunningham, in which black women talk about their church hats. It was actress/playwright Regina Taylor who thought to adapt Crowns into a theater piece, utilizing a range of existing African American music, from hymns and gospel to rap.

You might wonder how a coffee table book — even a wonderful one — could become a play. A fair question … and in fact, Taylor has wisely allowed much of the book to stand on its own. The greater part of Crowns-the-show is a sequence of monologues and songs in which women talk about their hats. (The sole male actor plays various related characters.)

Ah, but it's not about the hats alone. These Crowns are the stories of churches and families, of life's happiest times … and saddest. Any sense that the script has limited theatrical possibilities disappears as soon as we meet the ensemble, each and every one a star. In addition to Boston and Henry, they are: Josephine Howell, Cynthia Jones, Felicia V. Loud, Shaunyce Omar and C.E. Smith. Director Jacqueline Moscou, provides a superb sense of flow. Like I said, everybody is simply terrific. As for Boston and Henry, can we not simply give them the Broadway theater they deserve, and instantly triple the quality of American entertainment?

Under the circumstances, "hats off" is the wrong thing to write. Instead, a three-word order: Go at once!

CROWNS Through July 3, Prince Music Theater, 1412 Chestnut St., 215-569-9700