2001 Written by: | Terrence McNally Directed by: | Kristin Hanggi

God Help Productions, Chad Allen Played at: | The Lillian Theatre Company

Thaddeus | Scott Allgauer Andrew | James Barry Matthew | Adam Donshik Joshua | Nicholas Downs/Chad Allen Thomas | Alex Ledd Judas | Aaron Lohr Simon | Derrick McMillion James The Less| Scott Paetty John The Baptist | Justin Rubin Philip | John David Shepard Peter | Agustine Welles

The most controversial and talked about play of the 1998 theatrical season begins: "We are going to tell you an old and familiar story." But from that point on, nothing feels quite familiar again. What follows is a story that parallels the New Testament’s, and its subject is nothing less than the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus. But McNally’s Christ figure is a character named Joshua, a young man born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, in the early 1950s. Different from the other boys because he is homosexual, Joshua grows up in isolation and torment, an object of scorn. He flees Corpus Christi in search of a more accepting environment, gathering along the way a group of disciples who are bound to him by his message of love and tolerance. Joshua delivers his Sermon on the Mount, and officiates at a gay marriage ceremony, but, inevitably, his radical teachings (like Jesus’) will not deliver him from his fate. Returning to Corpus Christi, he is betrayed by his lover Judas and crucified in front of the jeering throngs who hated him as a boy, and still do. His plea, that we look upon all souls as equal in the sight of God, falls unattended

photo credit ©: Lew Abramson

Actors Featured this month: >Colin Firth >Vincent Gallo >Laura Linney >Ioan Gruffudd