44. Acts by Lachlan Mackinnon (The Acts of The Apostles)
“1: after the travelling
2: creak of timber
1: the salt smell
3: snagging his senses
2: you’d think he’d
1: lay off retire
3: to contemplation not
2: a bit of it”
After a much needed and greatly appreciated breakfast of milk, honey and pastries (not to mention a Bloody Mary or two) we headed back in to the theatre. Acts was an interesting piece to re-read, because it had by far the most specific staging instructions I’ve come across so far in the collection and unless my memory has deserted me they were almost entirely ignored. Quite possibly, in my opinion, for the better. The piece we saw was very lyrical, with a trinity of actors using an unstructured collaborative approach, combined with repetition to create an atmospheric poem.
45. The Man Who Came To Brunch by Amy Rosenthal (Romans)
“JONNY: My point being, that’s what it’s about. What we’re about. The food. The warmth. The importance of family. The culture, the heritage, the humour. There are the things that matter. And I’m here to tell you - none of this changes when you join our organisation. It’s in our blood. It’s who we are. We still eat fishballs, we still shrug. We still laugh at Woody Allen - the early stuff. Hand on heart, go and sit in my car, I’ve got Streisand singing Sondheim on a loop. Nothing is lost. We’re not sacrificing one single element of our Jewishness, we’re only gaining something. The eternal love of Jesus Christ our Lord.
BERNICE: Amen.
ELAINE: Stop it, Bernice.
HOWARD: Woody Allen? Fishballs? That’s what it’s all about? And there was I, thinking it had something to do with God!”
A story centred around a visit to a Jewish family by an agent from Jews for Jesus and the families converted daughter. Though this had plenty of humour, I must admit I mostly found it incredibly uncomfortable. I used to pass Jews For Jesus’ Camden branch on the way to work and just the idea of the institution makes me shudder. Plus I wasn’t sure how well the stereotypes straddled the line between truth and offensiveness. Though I thought the performances were good and did find myself laughing frequently.
46. Without Love by Matt Charman (1 Corinthians) *
“A few months ago when Neil got a little bit fat because we’re contented and I’m aware that happens to couples, I used a screwdriver and took the bathroom scales apart.
With the stickers you get when you buy a blank video I changed the numbers on the scale so that 13 stone now read 14 stone.
Neil soon became concerned at his weight gain and we designed a diet together, which proved successful.
When he began losing weight I moved the numbers again, as the ideal weight for Neil’s height is actually ten and a half stone and I knew he would get down to eleven stone then stop.
When he reached ten stone I adjusted the scales so they now read twelve stone.
I got him down to nine and a half stone with this method, which is, I realise, technically a stone underweight for Neil but I thought it was probably a good thing for his all-round health.”
I’m a big fan of Katherine Parkinson and having had to miss Cock, it was great to finally get to see her on stage. She has a wonderfully serene quality and manages to capture a balance between humour and sorrow, which made her an ideal match for this beautiful, sad and slightly quirky response. It’s left a slightly haunting feel with me, the deep damaged bereavement bubbling away under the reality of life, whilst still also making me smile.
47. The Wood Orchid by Wena Poon (2 Corinthians)
“‘You know what Teochew means?’
‘No’
‘Think of the characters. Chaozhou. Tide province. We are people of the tides, Saf. The world is our home.”
I was a little torn by this piece, there were a lot of things I really liked, but it felt a little overlong and a little contrived, not quite able to find its natural rhythm. That said, the cast handled the switches from narration to dialogue well and I thought the look at the way the Teochew culture was surviving and maintaining it’s identity throughout the world was very interesting and really loved the way it highlighted the beauty of the Bible’s language, here being used as a language learning aid. The section on temporal and eternal particularly stuck with me.
48. The Transgressor by Deidre Kinahan (Galatians)
“KEVIN: I really... I just don’t know what you’re talking about Damien.
DAMIEN: It says it in the Bible!
KEVIN: It says it in the Bible?
DAMIEN: Yeah.
KEVIN: ‘Thou shalt not get your tits done?’”
Definitely an interesting piece, that had a slightly Shakespearean feel for me thematically - repeating one of the Bible’s major repeating patterns - kinstrife and jealousy and the competition for a father’s love. It was also an interesting look at how the Bible can be a crutch and support for people. Though overall it felt like it didn’t quite go anywhere and could have done with a greater sense of resolution.
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49. Ephesus-Schmephesus by Marks and Gran (Ephesians)*
“ST PAUL: That’s disgusting. I never spill my seed! I’m repelled by all manifestations of the reproductive process. No, I was blinded by the splendour of His golden crown, His gorgeous raiment and His bounteous countenance. (To MIRIAM.) His mother was a virgin you know, unlike some I could mention.
RABBI: We are talking about the same Jesus?
ST PAUL: What do you mean?
RABBI: Because I knew him, in Nazareth, in the old days. He was always talking big, but between you and me, everyone thought he was just a naughty boy/
ST PAUL: He’s not a naughty boy, he’s The Messiah!”
It was at this point that St. Paul rather started to dominate the proceedings, unsurprisingly given how much space his epistles take up and we were treated to a diverse range of representations. Ephesus-Schmephesus was definitely a comic approach, feeling like Horrible Histories had taken on the Bible, which given I think Horrible Histories is one of the best programmes on TV at the moment, is top praise indeed. It was charming, funny and crammed full of cultural references, the Monty Python reference above just being the tip of the iceberg. The audience were giggling throughout and I enjoyed the subtle undermining of Biblical tradition. All three performers were excellent, though Samuel Barnett, a perennial favourite stole the show - the memory still makes me grin of him drifting off saying: ‘They’re called churches! And one day they’ll name one after me! A big one. With a dome.’
50. The Loss of All Things by Chris Goode (Philippians)
“PAUL: Sir, put me in a place where the rules are worth playing bu, and I’ll follow them closer than anyone. Give me something I can conform to with any pride and dignity and I’ll conform with all my heart and soul. Seriously. I’m longing for that. We’re all longing for that. I’m not the only one who wears this uniform, sir. That’s why it’s a uniform. Oh year this is how we got on to AIDS.
MARC: Is it?
PAUL: Because we seem to spend a lot of time talking about what I’m wearing and it seems like maybe in your imagination you’re thinking all the time about my clothes, are you?
MARC: No I’m not Paul. I’m really not.
PAUL: And my body. My clothes on my body. My skin underneath. You know how sometimes you can feel like between our clothes and your skin there’s just a king of static electricity. I really hate my clothes sometimes. Hate my breathing, like a machine. In and out like a machine. ...So I was thinking maybe you were thinking about my clothes and my skin.”
Definitely an interesting one, that felt to me like it wanted to be something bigger and maybe deserved to be. A twisted dark examination of sex, attraction, temptation and submission. With both the schoolboy characters of Paul and Tim holding an almost supernatural control over their teacher Marc. It reminded me in different ways of both The History Boys (though maybe that was because it followed so immediately after seeing Sam Barnett) and Wolfboy. I’d definitely be fascinated to see what followed with this story, or to see it explored in deeper detail.
51. Uncool Religion by Zukiswa Wanner (Colossians)
“Some guy in some European country draws cartoons of Mohammed? Hey, another reason for Christians and Moslems to slaughter each other in Africa. I tell you Paul, it is this type of behaviour makes me say, ‘thank God I am agnostic.’”
An agnostic’s response to St. Paul, beautifully and wryly performed by Rakie Ayola. As an agnostic myself it rang very true to me and I thought the criticisms of Paul’s demands were carefully considered. A very nice response even if it lacked the memorability of some of the other responses.
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Part 7
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