There is an understanding between women that, as a man, will always elude me. When I was a child, I recall my mother and sister communicating in ways I was incapable of comprehending. It was not a conversation of what was said, but of what was understood. Countless times, my sister would pull me aside and try to explain a perspective of the world that I could not see. When entering a room, most men have recognized the change of tone in the conversation between women. SISTAS, The Musical, reveals this mysterious world without compromises or self-consciousness.
SISTAS takes place, primarily, in the attic of a matriarch’s house. Five ladies rummage through their memories before the matriarch’s memorial services and rediscover their bond for one another. Through their interaction, there is plenty of cajoling, scolding, feisty attitude, and an undeniable abundance of love and music.
Not only is the music beautifully performed, it is revealed. Music is both personal and social. It sets a tone, defines moments in history and imbues the experiences of our lives.
Through history, music not only describes, it reacts. These women take music spanning four generations and portray the struggles and pride of their African American Heritage and their individual lives.
In turn, the music brings vibrancy to their lives while they bring life to the music. Songs need singers, as much as singers need songs. Through their bond, they find themselves singing each other’s songs while bringing each other’s lives into the music they make together.
This musical offers a number of insights into the lives of these ladies, but the beauty is to hear these ladies pour their hearts out in these songs.
SISTAS, The Musical, aired on BET, October 27 and is performed on Saturdays and Sundays at St. Luke’s Theater at 308 W. 46th Street.
Garrett Buhl Robinson is a poet and novelist. garrettrobinson.us
