The songs that the five members of choir sing in Choir Boy alternatively amplify and run counterpoint to the mood and situations of the play, sometimes revealing an emotional reality and other times injecting a humor into the play’s investigation of coming of age.
Stylistically, the play’s structure mirrors the spirituals these young men sing; there is call and response as the boys question and defend each other’s masculinities, a narrative crescendo of a revelation of a wide-kept secret, and the unmistakable intention to excavate meaning from the lived experiences of a specific community. As the play follows Pharus’ journey from childhood to adulthood, the music of the play follows the journey from slavery to freedom.
Take a listen to the songs—both traditional spirituals and more contemporary works—of Choir Boy.
Playlist:
“Trust and Obey” (Spiritual)
“I Couldn’t Hear Nobody Pray” (Spiritual)
“Eyes on the Prize” (Spiritual)
“Rockin’ Jerusalem” (Spiritual)
“Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child” (Spiritual)
“Can You Stand the Rain” (by New Edition)
“There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood” (Spiritual)
“Love Ballad” (by LTD)
“I’ve Been in the Storm So Long” (Spiritual)
“I Got A Rainbow Tied Around My Shoulder” (Spiritual)