The Gospel of Lovingkindness at Atlas Performing Arts Center

A hymn-and-hip-hop-tinged elegy, updated for its Washington premiere, the play tells the story of Manny, a 17-year-old who sings for President Obama at the White House and is shot to death three weeks later on the South Side of Chicago for his Air Jordan sneakers. Manny's mother retraces the trajectory of her son's fateful encounter with Noel, a fellow teenager with heartbreaking setbacks of his own, as she conjures the ghost of Ida B. Wells, the Civil Rights activist now 158 years old, who offers a challenging perspective for the family and our community. Staged by Mosaic Theater Resident Director Jennifer L. Nelson (The Whipping Man), this poignant chamber production will take place in the 100-seat Lab II Space at The Atlas.