Do The Sacred Mass Lyrics – Sister Act The Musical

Song Overview

Do The Sacred Mass is a West End-only number from Sister Act, placed midway through Act I on the 2009 London Palladium production and preserved on the Original London Cast Recording. In a rowdy bar, Deloris turns survival instinct into mock-liturgy, leading bikers and barflies through a send-up of Catholic rites with call-and-response energy. The official audio appears via Ghostlight’s “Provided to YouTube” stream and on major platforms.

Review and Highlights

Alan Menken writes a crowd-teaser with a wink: clap-along groove, pit-band brass pops, and a sturdy backbeat that invites the room to play along. Glenn Slater’s lyric stacks catechism buzzwords against barroom mischief, so every “Hail Mary” lands like a punchline. The bit works because Patina Miller leads like a bandleader, not a lecturer, pulling Mary Patrick and Mary Lazarus into the swirl while the bikers echo the “amen.”

Creation History

The West End production opened at the London Palladium on June 2, 2009, toplined by Miller with Sheila Hancock, Chris Jarman, and company; “Do The Sacred Mass” sits between Curtis’s threat song and the choir’s first big breakthrough. When the show transferred to Broadway in 2011, the score and book were reworked and this bar-set number was cut. The London cast album dropped in June 2009 on Stage Entertainment’s First Night imprint, with a 2011 digital rollout by Ghostlight/Sh-K-Boom.

Song Meaning

Plot

Deloris ducks out of the convent to blow off steam. Two nuns trail her. When Curtis’s goons spot Deloris in a habit, the room expects piety, so she delivers a parody liturgy to keep cover and keep danger at bay. It’s theater as quick thinking: she flips sacred vocabulary into a dance manual until the heat finds her again.

Song Meaning

The joke masks a thesis: ritual is choreography, and community is built by bodies moving together. Menken fuses hand-clap gospel attitude with bar-band R&B so the chorus feels like a congregation. The number frames Deloris’s gift - she can turn any room into a choir - and foreshadows how she’ll revive the parish later, ethically and acoustically. For listeners who know the Mass, the lyric’s playful “poses” and shouted prayers register as satire, not slander, because the faith language is treated as stagecraft, not a punch-down.

Style and instrumentation

Short, punchy, and dance-led. Rhythm section locks a mid-tempo pocket; brass hits underline the call-outs; ensemble shouts function like congregational responses. The two-and-a-half-minute runtime keeps the gag tight.

Emotional arc

It starts naughty-fun, spikes into full participation, and then tightens as the plot threat closes in. The laughter never fully erases the stakes - Deloris is hiding in plain sight.

Key Facts

• Artist: Patina Miller with the Original London Cast of Sister Act
• Featured performers (London recording): Claire Greenway, Julia Sutton, Katie Rowley Jones, company of bikers/barflies
• Composer: Alan Menken
• Lyricist: Glenn Slater
• Release Date: June 27, 2009
• Album: Sister Act: A Divine Musical Comedy - Original London Cast Recording
• Label: Stage Entertainment/First Night (UK 2009); U.S. digital by Ghostlight/Sh-K-Boom in 2011
• Length: about 2:43 on commonly used backing/reference timings
• Language: English with liturgical call-outs
• Stage context: West End only - cut for the Broadway transfer after 2011 revisions

Questions and Answers

Why doesn’t this song appear on Broadway cast recordings?

Because it was removed in the Broadway rewrite; London’s 2009 version includes it, the 2011 New York production does not.

What’s the official audio source?

Ghostlight’s “Provided to YouTube” upload and streaming services hosting the Original London Cast Recording.

Where does it sit in Act I?

After Curtis’s threat number and before the nuns’ choir takes off - a comic detour that still advances the chase.

Who leads the London version?

Patina Miller as Deloris, joined by Mary Patrick (Claire Greenway) and Mary Lazarus (Julia Sutton), with the onstage “bikers/barflies.”

How long is it?

Roughly two minutes and forty-odd seconds on commonly circulated timings, short enough to work as a brisk comic set-piece.

Awards and Chart Positions

Album performance: The Original London Cast album peaked at no. 8 on the UK Official Independent Albums Chart, no. 99 on the Official Physical Albums Chart, and no. 32 on the Album Downloads Chart in August 2009.

Production honors: The London production drew significant awards attention across its run; cast members including Sheila Hancock received 2010 Olivier recognition for their work.

How to Sing Do The Sacred Mass

Lead placement: Mezzo-soprano in speech-mix, agile enough for patter riffs. Keep vowels forward and bright so the crowd work carries.

Feel & tempo: Mid-tempo funk-gospel. Lock with the snare on 2 and 4; call-and-response must sit clean on the beat.

Diction & comedy: Punch catechism words as rim-shots - “Hail Mary,” “Our Father,” “Hosanna.” Smile through the mischief. Don’t sneak apologies between jokes.

Ensemble notes: Biker/barfly shouts should sound like a congregation. Keep unisons crisp, then fan briefly to triads on the last tag.

Additional Info

For context, the London score leans into 1970s grooves by design - a shift locked in during development and noted in licensing materials. That palette lets a barroom chant sit next to disco-gloss villainy and still feel of a piece.