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Essay / essay - 711
Passing Strange is a comedy-drama that tells the story of a young African-American artist's journey to Europe to discover himself in the musical field. In the first act, the narrator describes himself as a stew. The narrator and Youth interacted with the characters throughout the play through their performance as a singer. The young man's talent developed through his continued attendance at religious services for which he had been encouraged by his mother. The young man later joined the church choir thanks to a young girl he had fallen in love with (Citro, 2010). The narrator explains to us that it is not really a love affair between the two because the young girl belonged to the pastor. This period took place in the 1970s, when he became a member of a choir in the South Central district of Los Angeles. Over time, he became accustomed to operating a choral instrument such as the guitar. Consequently, he became very active in church services. He realized what his mother had told him before he started attending church services. According to the show, at first, the narrator did not attend church service until his mother convinced him. Things got worse when Youth informed his mother that the church could not encourage his singing career. Later, Youth added what his mother had told him (Citro, 2010). This is clearly seen after frequent attendance at religious services. According to the narrator, Youth started going to church and in the meantime became a good artist. In this act, Youth also tells his mother that gospel songs were boring compared to rock and roll songs in epiphanic moments of joy. The narrator insists that Youth could not understand what his mother was getting at. We are told that she had discovered his talent and thus the reason she had pushed him to attend the church choir during his...... middle of paper ......t saw his mother die because he came back to Los Angeles. He complains that he has no information about his mother's illness before rushing to Los Angeles (Tuan, 2011). The youngster deals with his grief after losing his mother. After death, Youth resurrects his mother's spirit through his art. The narrator concludes that Youth had begun to regret what had caused him to not obey his mother. From my perspective, the show contrasted the themes of love and understanding. Works cited Citro, JA (2010). Strange Passage: True Stories of the Hauntings and Horrors of New England. Shelburne, VT: Chapters Pub. Knapp, R., Morris, M., & Wolf, S.E. (2011). The Oxford Handbook of the American Musical. New York: University of Oxford PresTuan, Y. (2011). Strange and wonderful passage: aesthetics, nature and culture. Washington, DC: Island Press [for] Shearwater Books. s.