During a performance at The Chapel a couple years ago, singer ASTU was in the middle of performing the song “G4U” when their band broke into a gospel melody. Still in performance mode, ASTU called folks to the front of the venue — and the crowd responded.
“We had all these Black gay girls twerking to gospel music,” ASTU reflects, on a recent phone call. “I’m like, ‘This is church, literally.’ People were just totally free. It was an incredible feeling.”
![Jaz on Drums at a rehearsal for the play, Sanctuary.](https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-12-at-10.03.29%E2%80%AFAM-800x1066.png)
That feeling inspired the new play ‘Sanctuary,’ a musical journey through church and spirituality that’s steeped in Afro-fantasy and queer joy. The story, written by ASTU and Lovey and made possible by a grant from the 18th Street Arts Center and support from SF LGBT Center, features original music from ASTU, AroMa and 3LISE
“The message,” ASTU says, “is that we start in victory. On top, in the church.” Part of reimagining spirituality through the church, they explain, is uplifting the idea of coming from abundance, not from a deficit. And with that, the ways in which we connect with the divine can shift.