It\u2019s more about appreciation.<\/p>\n
Appreciate the time period when the play is set. \u201cBlues for an Alabama Sky\u201d takes place during the Harlem Renaissance<\/a>. New York, in the 1920s. \u201cIt was a time of great creativity in the Black community,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cIt was a real moment when Black people are celebrated and their culture becomes alive and celebrated.\u201d<\/p>\n Appreciate the costumes. \u201cIt\u2019s a very beautiful and glamorous time,\u201d she said. \u201cThe costumes are gorgeous. Everyone looks really good.\u201d<\/p>\n Appreciate the actors and their characters. \u201cI hope the audience connects to how charming all the actors and characters are,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cIt\u2019s a group of young people who have different dreams and who love and care for each other. They delight in each other\u2019s company.\u201d<\/p>\n Appreciate the pacing. Notice, she said, \u201chow quick-paced and smart and charming all these people are and the speed and facility with which the performers are able to tackle this material.\u201d<\/p>\n The play\u2019s vibe, she said, is mostly sit-com, requiring actors who have \u201ca lot of humanity and a lot of great comedic timing.\u201d<\/p>\n In \u201cBlues for an Alabama Sky,\u201d friends live in two separate apartments in the same Harlem building \u2013 reminiscent of the hit TV series \u201cLiving Single,\u201d<\/a> Robinson explained. There they form a chosen family \u2013 another aspect to appreciate, says Robinson.<\/p>\n \u201cIn this story, no one is related to each other, yet they\u2019ve all really found each other. They made a life together. They want what\u2019s best for each other,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n To be sure, it\u2019s not all sweetness and light. Two characters lose their work and face eviction. There\u2019s an unexpected pregnancy with consequences. Dreams are shattered yet rebuilt.<\/p>\n \u201cThis show has its fair share of tragedy,\u201d Robinson said. But each tragedy is offset, at least somewhat, \u201cby being with your friends, following your dreams and having deep ambitions. All of them want a better life for the people in their community and they are all working to achieve it.\u201d<\/p>\n Ebony Pullum<\/a> plays Angel, the lead character, a nightclub singer who can\u2019t get work. Taylor J. Mitchell<\/a> is Delia, who wants to open a health clinic in Harlem. Kash Goins<\/a> plays Sam, a doctor, and Tariq Kanu<\/a> is Leland, from Alabama, trying to adjust to life in New York.<\/p>\n Angel shares an apartment with Guy, a costume designer who dreams of being summoned to Paris to create dresses for iconic jazz singer Josephine Baker<\/a>. To play Guy, Robinson tapped Philly drag performer Cookie Diorio<\/a>.\u00a0 Cookie and Guy share a love for the glamorous. And, true to character, Cookie also speaks French and knows how to sew, Robinson said.<\/p>\n \u201cBlues for an Alabama Sky,\u201d<\/a> Feb. 12-March 15, Lantern Theater Co.<\/a>, at St. Stephen\u2019s Theater,<\/a> 923 Ludlow St., Phila. 215-829-0395.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Read the news \u2013 one outrage, one calamity after another. And yes, the arts often lean into the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":113188,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[4877,54078,69,71,70,1483],"class_list":["post-113187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-arts","tag-lantern-theater-company","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-theater"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=113187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=113187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=113187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=113187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/156-Tariq-and-Kash.jpg\")
Tariq Kanu and Kash Goins play Sam and Leland, respectively in the Lantern Theater\u2019s production of \u201cBlues for an Alabama Sky.\u201d (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/213-Cookie-and-Taylor.jpg\")
Cookie Diorio (back) and Taylor J. Mitchell in the Lantern Theater\u2019s production of \u201cBlues for an Alabama Sky.\u201d (Photo by Mark Garvin)<\/p>\n