Structure

The play is accomplished in one act and takes place in one scene at a Baptist church. Numerous characters enter and leave, but the action takes place in only one location.

Baraka uses a chorus, a classical technique favored by the ancient Greeks in which a group of people sing or chant important parts of a play. Often, the chorus was used to mark the parts of the play, commenting on what the audience had just seen or was about to see. In Baraka's play, the six or so Women are a chorus, singing bits of old gospel songs and praising the Boy when they think he is Christ. The Minister claims responsibility for the chorus of Women, calling them "my usherettes." The use of the chorus recalls traditional forms of drama, but it also lends an almost comic air to the play.

Character Types

Baraka has created...