PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) – The Black Theatre Troupe is bringing the ‘Black Nativity’ back to Phoenix!
The group has been performing the show since 1975 and selling out every single year. The play is a retelling of the Biblical Nativity story, written as a song-play by Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes. It features an entirely Black cast replete with music, dancing, and pushes elements of joy, hope, victory, liberation and a sense of family unity forward.
The show will run throughout the month of December from Dec. 2 until Dec. 18. Tickets start at $44, and you can find them here!
This year’s production is directed by Walter Belcher, Tucson-area resident and director of Camp Up with People–an international youth leadership program that teaches youth the importance of speaking up and advocating for social justice. Choreography is directed by Alexander Patrick and musical direction by Brenda Hankins.
“We think of it as our Christmas card to the community. They demand it every season,” executive director David Hemphill. “It changes so even if people have seen it already, it’s always new.” Hemphill says that the show utilizes different elements that modernize the show.
Watch the video above to hear a sampling of one of Mary and Joseph’s performances in the show.
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