FROM THE ARCHIVES: WHAT ABOUT THE CAMELS?:

The Nativity, Now Chasing the Rockettes (BRUCE WEBER, December 9, 2002, NY Times)

Spread the Word," a rollicking gospel chorale, concludes "Nativity: A Life Story," the Broadway-size and starry Christmas pageant that had three performances over the weekend at the United Palace in Washington Heights.

On Friday night, by the time the cast (which included Phylicia Rashad, Keith David, Stephanie Mills, BeBe Winans, Freddie Jackson, three choirs and 125 people over all) got through with the song's repeated, rousing choruses, led by the full-throated and fully animated Lillias White, the audience was on its feet and roaring as though a rock concert was ending--or at least "Mamma Mia!" The song celebrates faith, and it is a fitting conclusion to this grandly spirited and wholly contemporary show, whose creators have persevered with a faith of their own.

A quirky combination of spiritual fervor, showbiz glamour, African-American pride and a celebration of women, "Nativity" has been presented in a variety of auditoriums over the past seven years, all the while growing in scope and building an audience, as well as earning the sponsorship of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Last year the show overflowed the 1,900-seat capacity of Riverside Church.

Now it has found what Howard Dodson, the Schomburg's executive director, told the Friday night audience will be a permanent annual home at the United Palace, the ornate and opulent 3,500-seat theater at 175th Street and Broadway that was built for vaudeville in the late 1920's and now is owned by Frederick Eikerenkoetter (better known as Reverend Ike) and the United Christian Evangelistic Association.

The shows creator's--the actors James Stovall and Hattie Winston and the composer and orchestrator Harold Wheeler--as well as the Schomburg, are hopeful that with an expanded annual schedule "Nativity: A Life Story" will become a holiday tradition to rival the Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall and "A Christmas Carol" at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, not to mention spurring the growth uptown, from Harlem to Washington Heights, of Broadway-style theatrical entertainment.

Hopefully there's a secular roadshow they can send to Dallas. [Originally Posted: 2002-12-10] Posted by Orrin Judd at December 24, 2006 12:06 AM