Fasten your Seat Belts for “The Fall from Heaven”
There’s a line from a great Bette Davis movie in which the star warns her party guests “Fasten your seats belts. It’s going to be a bumpy night.”
Something similar could be said to the audience prior to the start of each show of “The Fall from Heaven” as performed by the Crowded Kitchen Players at Trinity Episcopal Church in Bethlehem.
THIS fall is one heckuva lot to absorb, although it’s worth the bumps if you have your seat belt fastened.
Tempest Landry, a street-wise dude who dies in the crossfire of bullets from a street robbery, is called before St Peter to accept the judgment of Heaven. 
But as played by strong and audacious Will Alexander, Tempest asserts his free will and refuses to accept the verdict of St. Peter, who has condemned him to Hell.
He is therefore sent back to earth with his parole-officer angel, Joshua Angel, played by a slick and smooth Roy Shuler, and both men find themselves inhabiting a world which is caught between Heaven and Hell, one which teaches them some unusual lessons.
While Tempest has already known carnal pleasures in his former life, Joshua is introduced to temporal joys as he acquires a wife and family, and eternity seems to grow increasingly indistinct.
Other compelling characters lure these men, including two women, Darlene (Felicia White), lusty girlfriend to Tempest, and Branwyn, (Erica Baxter), the warm-hearted wife of Joshua and mother of their child.
Tempest also survives an encounter with Satan, cunningly portrayed by the (Dare I say it') only white man in the show, David “Oz” Oswald, whose name is Basil Bob (Say it out loud!), a seducer who is reduced to quivering jelly when confronted by the resolute soul of the Man Who Would Dare Say No to him, Tempest Landry.
The performances were excellent throughout, as we watch Joshua change adroitly from pure angel to mere (') mortal; enjoy the squall of wild fury in Tempest as he lives up to his name; see both Darlene and Branwyn bring multiple comedic and sympathetic characters to their portrayals; and know that Basil Bob’s charm and his opulent uptown Brownstone will look great only until..., well, until someone says, "No!"
Director Ara Barlieb has given each one of these players a resolute purpose and the means to fulfill it in this very complex production.
The staging is accomplished in the round, in a room-size open area with three large platforms placed in a triangular fashion, which account for all the settings of the play, bedrooms, offices, elevators, street scenes, etc, with little other furniture than an occasional stool or small table, changed quickly between scenes.
The lighting was rather stark; but I very much enjoyed Mr. Barlieb’s 40’s era musical selections during the many scene changes, which seemed to be a running commentary on the action.
Walter Mosley is famous for his crime fiction and seems at home here in his first play, “The Fall from Heaven”; but I wish I had read the script beforehand. There is a huge amount of dialogue to capture if one is coming upon this show for the first time, and because the play is staged in the round, you are bound to have some of the dialogue spoken away from you. However, I credit the actors for projecting as well as they were able to do.
The language of the play strikes a balance between philosophy and action, but it has lofty twists and turns from Heaven to Hell, and from black perspective to white and everything in between.
Tempest’s challenge to authority reflects our contemporary struggles with morality and power and makes “The Fall from Heaven” a bumpy, but ultimately satisfying and very relevant ride.
And you can unfasten your seat belt for the curtain call. It’s a lovely change from the standard bow.
Crowded Kitchen Players' production of "The Fall of Heaven" runs November 7 through November 15, 2015 at Trinity Episcopal Church, 44 East Market Street, Bethlehem, PA.
For ticket information and reservations, please call 610-395-7176 or visit www.ckplayers.com