“Crumbs from the table of joy,” a satisfying meal

By Constance Garcia-Barrio

Grief, adolescence, risky politics, and an interracial marriage roil the Crump family in “Crumbs from the Table of Joy”, which opened November 15 at the Lantern Theater Company in Center City. The author, prolific African American playwright Lynn Nottage, whose work often centers on Black working-class people, remains the only woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice.

The cast includes Walter DeShields as Godfrey Crump, a lean handsome baker in his mid-to-late 30s; Morgan Charece Hall as his daughter Ernestine, 17; Monet Debose as his daughter Ermina; Barrymore Award winner Brett Ashley Robinson as his sister-in-law Lily, and Barrymore Award winner Hillary Parker as Gerte Schulte, his second wife. Bianca LaVerne Jones directs the production.

The story takes place in the fall of 1950 in Brooklyn, where Godfrey has moved with his daughters after leaving Pensacola, Florida, following the recent death of his wife, Sandra. Godfrey wants to be near religious leader Father Divine – a.k.a. Reverend Major Jealous Divine (1877?-1965) – an actual public figure who gained prominence, in part, by providing cheap, nutritious meals in Harlem during the Depression.

Godfrey, unmoored after his wife’s death, seeks answers about life’s dilemmas from Father Divine. But when Godfrey reaches Brooklyn, he learns that Father Divine has moved to Philadelphia. (Father Divine bought the luxury apartment building at Broad St. and Fairmount Avenue, renaming it the Divine Lorraine Hotel, the first posh hotel in this city to be fully integrated).

In the play, Godfrey adheres to Father Divine’s precepts of hard work, celibacy, little music, and no alcohol. Ernestine and Ermina chafe at the strictures. “Daddy wants us to wear the Vs,” they say, “Virtue, Victory, and Virginity.” 

“Yes indeed. Peace and blessings,” Godfrey responds.

The tension rachets up after Lily, sister of the deceased Sandra, shows up at the door of the Crumps’ dreary basement apartment. She moves in because she has vowed to watch over Ernestine and Ermina. 

“I promised Nana [the girls’ grandmother] I’d look after these gals for her,” Lily says. “She don’t think it’s proper that a man be living alone with his daughters once they sprung bosom.”

Lily’s drinking, cussing, sharp dressing, and sexy demeanor fascinate Ernestine and Ermina, but clash with Father Divine’s ideals. Lily’s words also suggest that she and Godfrey may have had an intimate relationship in the past. 

The actors convey emotions with different degrees of success. DeShields is convincing in showing Godfrey’s simultaneous attraction to and disapproval of Lily. Godfrey’s rage and grief also come across.

Robinson as Lily portrays a full palette of emotions, from warmth toward her nieces to sorrow over her sister’s death. Everything from body language to the hint of an accent make this character engaging. Lily’s arrival quickens the pace of the first half, which seems slow at times.  

The second half moves briskly when Godfrey marries and brings home Gerte, a German immigrant woman he meets on a subway car. Gerte arouses the animosity of Lily, Ernestine, and Ermina.

“If I had me twenty dollars, I’d get Randall’s cousin, who was in prison to break you-know-who’s kneecaps,” Ermina says of Gerte.

One empathizes with Gerte’s loneliness and steep learning curve in Hillary Parker’s portrayal of this character. 

“When I arrived in America, I thought all colored people either played jazz or were laborers,” Gerte says. On the other hand, Parker brings sparkling moments to her scenes. At one point, she delivers a convincing imitation of German and American actress and singer Marlene Dietrich.

The play has lean dialogue, sharply drawn characters, and humor. Philadelphians of a certain age will recognize the 1950s stove, kitchen canisters, and huge radio on the set. Likewise, the tunes and radio broadcasts stir post-war memories. Nottage also includes the political upheavals of the era, with allusions to U.S. Sen. Joseph McCarthy (1908-1957), remembered for blacklisting people whom he considered communists.

Morgan Charece Hall draws on Philly memories in portraying Ernestine.

“I was born at Temple University Hospital, and I lived in Logan,” Hall said. “When I was 10, my parents divorced.” 

Afterwards, Hall resided with her mother in the South much of the time as she grew up. 

“I drew on the feeling of being uprooted since Ernestine moves North with her family after her mother dies,” Hall says. 

Hall points out that “Crumbs from the Table of Joy” is a memory play. Ernestine is between 42 to 45 years old as she looks back on what happened in the autumn when she was 17.

“The play is about how people process grief,” said Hall, who teaches theatre at middle schools and high schools, including Duke Ellington School of the Arts, and at Howard University. “The play has a message of hope — no matter what you go through, you can go back, look at it, and learn from it. If you’ve ever experienced grief, if you’ve been uprooted or had to integrate new people into your family and set boundaries with people you love, you’ll see it in this play. It’s a delicious meal.”

“Crumbs from the Table of Joy” runs through December 10 at St. Stephen’s Theater, located at 10 & Ludlow Streets. For tickets, contact the box office at: (215) 829-0395.