Raise The Praise
By Christa Skiles

Adam Fleming, Mauricio Perez, Matthew Kadin Craig, Shua Potter and Ravi Roth in Altar Boyz. Photo by Jerry Naunheim, Jr.

On the last night of their "Raise the Praise" U.S. tour, the Altar Boyz are coming to Cincinnati to rock the masses of all denominations! A Christian boy band hailing from Greenville, Ohio, the Boyz — Matthew, Mark, Luke, Juan and Abraham — are intent on saving souls and raising spirits with their spectacular music, sinfully sensational dancing, unnerving sense of fashion and uncanny ability to drop the funk in freaky five-part harmony.

The Boyz come complete with their Sony Soul Sensor DX-12, which provides a countdown throughout the concert of audience members who are burdened with sin. (In fact, those who have “got guilt” are encouraged to complete a special confession card and deposit it in the lobby prior to the start of the show). The mission: to witness the tally decrease to zero by the end of the night. As the Boyz watch the number tick lower and lower, they share stories of their genesis in the halls of St. Bartholomew’s Parish and of the divine inspiration that one day changed their lives, helping them conquer the pancake breakfast and bingo hall circuit to become talented heartthrobs.

The guys perform all of their signature hits, with songs that feature such memorable lyrics as "Girl, you make me wanna wait" and "Jesus called me on my cell phone." As they do, soul-wrenching secrets come tumbling out with unintentionally hilarious results. The Boyz discover that, before they can help others, they must examine their faith in themselves. They also reaffirm one of life’s most important lessons: there is no star as bright as its constellation, no harmony in a single voice.

Altar Boyz is a sweet-natured musical comedy spoof that first premiered in 2004 at the New York Musical Theatre Festival. In the spring of 2005, it transferred to off-Broadway’s New World Stages, where it still is running, having celebrated its two-year anniversary this past March. The show pokes inoffensive fun at Christianity, religion and the cultural phenomenon of the boy band. Almost universally acclaimed, Altar Boyz won the 2005 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Musical and was nominated for seven Drama Desk Awards, including Best Music, Best Lyrics, Best Book and Best Musical.

The show additionally has generated legions of fans. The most enthusiastic dub themselves the Altarholics and make a point of seeing the show again and again, some even hundreds of times across the country. The Altarholics host their own official fan site (www.altarholics.com), with message forums, online photo galleries and special challenges, such as helping Abe find his miracle funk, writing the next hit Altar Boyz tune or giving visitors the opportunity to prepare their own responses should Jesus one day reach out and touch them on their new iPhones.

The Playhouse production will be remounted by the show’s original director, Stafford Arima, who helmed last season’s world premiere musical Ace. He’s assembled an all-new cast of Boyz possessing that magical “Holy Trinity” of talent: acting, singing and dancing. Those who would like to learn more about the development of the show should plan to attend the production’s Playhouse Perspectives event on October 28 at 6 p.m. when the guest speaker will be the musical’s book writer Kevin Del Aguila.

Altar Boyz is certain to be one of the hottest tickets of the fall. Sharing a message of tolerance, love and the power of good hair products, this is one boy band manufactured in heaven.