The Nativity scene, a depiction of the birth of Jesus Christ, has been a central part of Christmas celebrations for centuries. Over time, various cultures have adapted the traditional Nativity to reflect their own unique heritage and experiences. One notable example is the African American Nativity scene, which brings a distinctive cultural lens to the story of Jesus' birth.
Langston Hughes and Black Nativity
One of the most prominent examples of the African American Nativity is Black Nativity, an adaptation of the Nativity story by Langston Hughes, performed by an entirely Black cast. Hughes was the author of the book, with the lyrics and music being derived from traditional Christmas carols, sung in gospel style, with a few songs created specifically for the show.
The show was first performed Off-Broadway on December 11, 1961, and was one of the first plays written by an African American to be staged there. Hughes developed Black Nativity in 1961 after the founders of Cleveland's famous Karamu House, Rowena and Russell Jelliffe, commissioned him for the project. As a young man, Hughes had premiered many of plays there and remained lifelong friends with the Jelliffes.
Langston Hughes' "Black Nativity" Premieres | This Week in Black History
The Structure and Themes of Black Nativity
- The show begins with the theater completely darkened.
- Barefoot singers clad only in white robes and carrying electric candles walk in, singing the classic hymn "Go Tell It on the Mountain".
- The birth of Jesus is one of the most dramatic aspects of the show, as the stage--previously lit with orange and blue lights--is bathed in a deep red hue.
- Mary's contractions are echoed through the use of African drums and percussion.
- The Three Wise Men are often played by prominent members of the Black community in the neighboring area and have no singing parts.
- The show closes with the chorus singing a reprise of "Go Tell It on the Mountain" as they walk out in darkness.
Performances and Legacy
Black Nativity has been performed annually in Boston, Massachusetts, at various locations, such as: the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts, Boston Opera House, Tremont Temple, Roxbury Community College, Northeastern's Blackman Auditorium, and presently at Emerson College's Paramount Theater. It has been performed in Boston since 1970 and is considered the longest-running production of Langston Hughes' Black Nativity.
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A performance of this musical also has taken place every Christmas season since 1998 in Seattle, first at the Intiman Theatre and currently at the Moore Theatre. An original cast recording, titled Black Nativity, Gospel On Broadway! featuring Marion Williams & the Stars of Faith, Princess Stewart and Prof.
Inspired by Langston Hughes’ 1963 original production, Boston’s Black Nativity retains the artistic direction of NCAAA Founder Elma Lewis; Director of Drama, Vernon Blackman; Choreographer, George Howard; and legendary Nigerian master percussionist, Michael Babatunde Olatunji.
The Nativity Story Through a Unique Lens
Black Nativity tells the story of the birth of the Christ Child from the point of view of Black Americans in the early twentieth century. Amid the hilly streets of Bethlehem, a hotel with butlers and maids is set and filled with gospel music and gossipy chatter. Black Nativity welcomes ALL people, far and wide, into our circle of light. This is the Nativity story told through the lens of the African American experience, but its message belongs to everyone who has ever needed hope, ever sought home, ever dreamed of a world where love wins.
Though based on New Testament gospels, we offer the story as a testament to the joy of new births and to the hope that fills persons of “good will” from all traditions. 75+ Voices Rising as One - Children and adults unite in glorious gospel harmonies that will move your spirit and stir your soul.
Visual Elements in Nativity Scenes
The visual focus of a Nativity scene is the Christ Child, with Mary, Joseph, animals, shepherds, and wise men all playing secondary roles. The most detailed biblical account of the birth of Jesus is found in Luke (2:7), which records that Mary “gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”
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The Christ Child and Manger
Early Christian art depicts the baby Jesus in these swaddling cloths-usually a square piece of cloth wrapped snugly with bandages. In medieval and Renaissance Nativities, however, the baby is often shown wearing little or no clothing, and radiating a supernatural light. This is consistent with the mystical vision of St. Bridget (Birgitta) of Sweden (1303-73), who claimed to have seen “the glorious infant lying on the earth, naked and glowing” (Revelationes Coelestes:Book 7, Chapter 21).
Bridget’s “Celestial Revelations,” which were translated from Swedish into Latin and spread widely throughout Europe, contain a detailed account of her vision of the Nativity. Most modern Nativities either depict the Christ Child wrapped in swaddling cloths or almost naked with a loincloth. A manger is a trough for feeding animals. In biblical times mangers were essentially boxes, either carved from stone or built from masonry.
However, modern three-dimensional Nativities exhibit a wide variety of manger styles, depending on regional customs or the preference of the artisan. The manger is often made of wood, filled with hay, and placed on the ground in a stable.
Stable or Cave
“The Friendly Beasts,” a traditional Christmas carol, tells us that Jesus “was humbly born in a stable rude, and the friendly beasts around him stood.” While the New Testament never mentions a stable, Luke (2:7) recounts that Mary “laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” The earliest Christians located the manger in a cave.
The Church of the Nativity, which dates to the 4th century, was built over the cave in Bethlehem where the birth was believed to have taken place. The Infancy Gospel of James (chapter 18) also places the Nativity in a cave, but the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew combines the two locations, explaining that on the third day after the birth “Mary went out of the cave and, entering a stable, placed the child in the manger” (chapter 14).
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In early Christian art the cave was the setting for Nativity scenes, and this continues to be the case with Nativities made by the Eastern Christian Church. Eastern icons place the newborn Christ at the mouth of a deep cave, to symbolize His descent into the very depth of the human condition. A free-standing stable has always been customary in western European art, although makers of Nativities in Italy prefer the grotto (an artificial construction or excavation made to resemble a cave).
In paintings of the Italian Renaissance, ruined Roman architecture sometimes appears in the background of a Nativity scene to indicate that, due to the birth of Christ, the old pagan culture is now falling away.
Ox and Ass
The Christmas carol “Good Christian Men Rejoice” proclaims that “ox and ass before Him bow, and He is in the manger now; Christ is born today.” The humble ox and ass, which are never mentioned in the New Testament, are almost always present in Nativity scenes, often with their heads bowed over the manger.
These animals appear in the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew (14:1), which interprets them as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophesy. According to Pseudo-Matthew, after entering the stable Mary placed the Child in a manger and “an ox and an ass adored him. Then was fulfilled that which was said by Isaiah the prophet, ‘The ox knows his owner, and the ass his master’s crib’” (Isaiah 1:3).
Early Christian theologians found allegorical meaning in the presence of the ox and ass at the Nativity, with the ox representing Israel and the ass the Gentiles. The divine Christ Child came to save people of all nations. The ox and ass are included in Nativity art from the very beginning, even when Mary and Joseph are absent.
Mary and Joseph
The biblical accounts in Matthew and Luke make it clear that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was miraculously born of a virgin, and “the virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1:27). Luke records that Mary was present with the babe during the visit from the shepherds (2:16), and Matthew says that when the wise men came they “saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him” (2:11). The Bible provides very little information about Mary’s background, but she figures prominently in the New Testament Apocrypha.
Mary is sometimes absent from the earliest artistic representations of the Nativity, but by the end of the 5th century she is always found at the manger. For the first thousand years of Christian art she was usually depicted lying down, in a posture apparently intended to convey exhaustion after giving birth. This begins to change in western European art during the 14th century, and from the late 15th century onward Mary is normally shown kneeling, with both hands together, praying to her divine Child.
In the biblical account Joseph, the husband of Mary, is described as being a descendant of King David (Luke 2:4) and“a just man” (Matthew 1:19). The Bible does not reveal Joseph’s age, but in art he has traditionally been depicted as an old man, sometimes bald, in keeping with his portrayal in a number of non-biblical texts.
Some modern Nativities retain this tradition by giving Joseph grey hair. Joseph is frequently shown holding a staff, which sometimes terminates in a flower. This attribute has its origins in an apocryphal story of how Joseph was selected to be Mary’s husband.
Shepherds
The Gospel of Matthew makes no mention of shepherds, but Luke’s description of their role in the Nativity runs to twelve verses (2:8-20). Art historians generally divide this portion of the Christmas story into two scenes-the Annunciation to the Shepherds and the Adoration of the Shepherds-with overlap sometimes occurring between the two. Nativities often portray the shepherds as reacting to the news of the Annunciation, or in the act of Adoration, or both.
The Annunciation to the Shepherds occurred at night while they were in the field watching their flocks. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and “the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear” (Luke 2:9). However, the angel gave them the good news that Christ the Savior was born, and revealed to them that in Bethlehem they would find “a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger” (2:12).
Once the angel was finished speaking, many more angels (the “heavenly host”) appeared to the shepherds, who welcome their message and sing it with joy.
