LIKE
ME,
YOU
have
no
doubt
noticed
with
admiration,
the
sartorial
effort
—
particularly
in
the
millinery
department
—
made
by
many
black
women
when
they
head
out
for
church
services
on
Sunday
morning.
In
boaters,
cloches,
derbies,
and
cartwheels,
ostrich
feathers,
sequins,
bows,
and
veils,
the
church
ladies
elegantly
carry
off
a
fashion
statement
that,
for
the
most
part,
has
been
abandoned
by
the
majority
of
other
devotees
of
style.
Through
“Crowns,”
a
soulfully
inspiring
and
spirited
musical
play
written
and
directed
by
Regina
Taylor
(best
known
as
Lilly
Harper
on
television’s
“I’ll
Fly
Away”),
the
important
tradition
of
these
hats
and
the
character
of
some
of
the
strong
ladies
who
wear
them
is
revealed
nightly
in
a
rousing
production
at
Arena
Stage’s
Kreeger
Theatre.
The
show
is
adapted
from
Michael
Cunningham
and
Craig
Marberry’s
book,
also
titled
“Crowns.”
Inspired
by
the
authors’
mothers,
the
book
brings
together
black
and
white
portraits
of
hat-wearing
black
women
alongside
interviews
featuring
memories
and
philosophies
on
why
wearing
a
hat
to
Sunday
worship
is
socially,
culturally
and
—
biblically
—
the
right
thing
to
do.
On
stage,
“Crowns”
is
structured
around
the
Sunday
experience
of
the
average
churchgoing
black
woman.
Taylor
describes
“Crowns”
as
“a
gospel
music
driven
piece
…
a
crazy
quilt
of
music
and
movement
and
storytelling
that
takes
us
through
the
rituals
of
a
Sunday
in
the
South
with
characters
breaking
out
of
the
framework
to
deliver
‘arias,’
direct
addresses
to
the
audience
that
may
start
in
the
Sunday
church
service
but
jump
off
into
memories
of
life
experiences
in
different
times
and
different
places.”
The
plot
revolves
around
Yolanda,
an
out-of-control
Brooklyn
teen.
After
her
brother
Teddy
is
gunned
down,
her
mother
sends
her
down
South
to
live
with
her
grandmother.
It’s
through
listening
to
hat
stories
told
by
her
grandmother
and
the
other
“hat
queens”
that
Yolanda,
sporting
her
brother’s
red
baseball
cap
backwards,
reluctantly
learns
a
sense
of
tradition
among
black
women
without
losing
her
individuality.
WHETHER
IT’S
THE
story
about
the
blind
woman
who
raised
eight
kids
and
always
wore
a
hat
to
church,
or
the
one
about
the
proud
young
woman
who
buys
an
expensive
hat
in
a
store
that
was
previously
whites-only,
Yolanda
hears
tales
about
proud
women
striving
against
adversity
and
succeeding.
But
make
no
mistake,
“Crowns”
isn’t
all
about
saints
and
drudges.
One
character
half-jokingly
says,
“I’d
lend
my
children
before
I
lend
my
hat.
My
children
know
their
way
home.”
Another
woman
owns
so
many
hats
it’s
causing
trouble
in
her
marriage.
She
tells
her
husband
that
the
hats
aren’t
going.
“Crowns”
features
a
cast
of
seven
with
talent,
energy,
and
panache
to
spare.
Desire
DuBose
beautifully
portrays
Yolanda’s
journey
from
a
reckless
rebel
to
a
young
woman
with
a
purpose.
As
Mother
Shaw,
Tina
Fabrique
is
the
matriarch,
stalwart
and
wise.
Gail
Grate
plays
Wanda,
a
woman
who
prides
herself
on
what
constitutes
a
proper
topper.
Lynda
Gravatt
is
Mabel,
the
preacher’s
wife,
who
won’t
let
a
new
hat
stop
her
from
vigorously
praising
the
Lord.
Local
favorite
Bernadine
Mitchell
playfully
portrays
Velma.
And
Karan
Kendrick
is
Jeanette,
the
youngest
of
the
church
ladies.
John
Steven
Crowley
portrays
the
various
men
in
the
ladies’
lives.
At
different
times,
he
is
rascally,
stern,
or
simply
poignant.
Costume
designer
Emilio
Sosa’s
hats
are
all
fabulous.
Ranging
from
a
fox
fur
heirloom
to
a
towering,
glittery
showstopper,
his
collection
of
beautiful
crowns
allows
for
all
this
fuss
over
hats
to
make
perfect
sense.
