As It Is In Heaven

A religious community is changed when a non-believer has an ecstatic
experience. The 1830’s Shaker society of Pleasant Hill, Kentucky, is
set in ordered ways. Their once dramatic form of worship has
by now developed into routine

The arrival of Fanny upsets the harmony; the Sisters suspect her to be a “winter Shaker,” one who suddenly converts when life gets too hard on the farm

Fanny sees angels in the meadow, and soon all the young women are receiving spiritual “gifts” of songs, drawings, ideas and giggles, completely upsetting the community

The leaders question Fanny’s intentions and honesty - Is this a resurgence of the original Shaker celebration or something manufactured by Fanny so that she can remain with the Shakers?

Eldress Hannah is jealous that she, the most devout of Shakers, has not been privileged to see the visions

But only the ones who question need visual proof. Whether they were heavenly or earthly, the angels were there

“Hands to Work, Hearts to God” is their motto, and in each scene the Sisters are always at tasks

The set is as simple as the Shakers - benches, baskets and laundry. Hymns sung a cappella punctuate the scenes of the play, which ends with a joyful explosion of Shaker singing and ecstatic dance