Preview: Passion Play marks 30 years of bringing Bible story to the Badlands
Article content
This is the third year the Passion Play has used the Matthew Gospel because it has proven so popular with audiences. Matthew was initially vilified because he was a tax collector, known as Levi. This is why he understood the plight of the prostitute Mary Magdalene. They were both outsiders whom Jesus welcomed into his inner circle, as symbols of his love and acceptance of everyone.
'The one thing I learned very quickly is that this is a very physical role. There are three hills I have to run up and down. By the end of the summer, I am going to be in the best shape I've been in for a long while. I'm grateful for the time when I get to ride on the donkey.'
Suart, who was raised Catholic, says his religion has given him a proximity to the story.
'Jesus was the ultimate outsider. That's what I share with him. I'm coming into a group that has been working together for 30 years. I'm the manager of a restaurant, who is getting to play one of the most iconic roles imaginable. People keep asking me how my Jesus will be different. I tell them that the last few actors who played Jesus had long straight hair. The longer my hair grows, the curlier it gets, so they're going to see a curly-haired Jesus. The story is the same. The script we're using is the same. It will just be a physical thing. I do think I bring a smile and warmth to my characterization.'
This year, the Badlands Arts Centre has completed a new indoor space that can be used year-round. Eventually, it will be used for a winter Nativity event, telling the birth of Christ. It will have a 270-degree projection wall that will be used for a Passion Play digital experience.
This year's 30th anniversary production of the Badlands Passion Play will run weekends from July 5 through 20. The play runs approximately two and a half hours. The theatre is located on the outskirts of Drumheller. See https://badlandsamp.com/badlands-passion-play/
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Edmonton Journal
7 hours ago
- Edmonton Journal
Preview: Passion Play marks 30 years of bringing Bible story to the Badlands
Article content This is the third year the Passion Play has used the Matthew Gospel because it has proven so popular with audiences. Matthew was initially vilified because he was a tax collector, known as Levi. This is why he understood the plight of the prostitute Mary Magdalene. They were both outsiders whom Jesus welcomed into his inner circle, as symbols of his love and acceptance of everyone. 'The one thing I learned very quickly is that this is a very physical role. There are three hills I have to run up and down. By the end of the summer, I am going to be in the best shape I've been in for a long while. I'm grateful for the time when I get to ride on the donkey.' Suart, who was raised Catholic, says his religion has given him a proximity to the story. 'Jesus was the ultimate outsider. That's what I share with him. I'm coming into a group that has been working together for 30 years. I'm the manager of a restaurant, who is getting to play one of the most iconic roles imaginable. People keep asking me how my Jesus will be different. I tell them that the last few actors who played Jesus had long straight hair. The longer my hair grows, the curlier it gets, so they're going to see a curly-haired Jesus. The story is the same. The script we're using is the same. It will just be a physical thing. I do think I bring a smile and warmth to my characterization.' This year, the Badlands Arts Centre has completed a new indoor space that can be used year-round. Eventually, it will be used for a winter Nativity event, telling the birth of Christ. It will have a 270-degree projection wall that will be used for a Passion Play digital experience. This year's 30th anniversary production of the Badlands Passion Play will run weekends from July 5 through 20. The play runs approximately two and a half hours. The theatre is located on the outskirts of Drumheller. See
Calgary Herald
10 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Preview: Passion Play marks 30 years of bringing Bible story to the Badlands
The Badlands Passion Play in Drumheller is one of Alberta's premier entertainment ambassadors. Article content Since its inception in 1994, this live telling of the ministry of Jesus Christ has been heralded as one of the top 10 attractions in Canada. Article content Seating 2,500 people, which is the same capacity as the Jubilee auditoriums in Calgary and Edmonton, it is the largest outdoor amphitheatre in Canada, and last year, it passed an accumulated attendance of more than 300,000 people. The Badlands event theatre is situated on 400 acres of an old mining site, whose hills provide the backdrop for this dramatic theatrical event. The stage itself is six acres in size. Article content Article content In its 30 years, 15 actors, beginning with Hunter Barnes, have played the role of Jesus. This year, this central role will be played by 30-year-old Calgary actor Connor Suart. He leads a cast of more than 75, mostly volunteer, actors. Article content 'I've never seen the show. I really went in blind. I certainly heard about it, but wouldn't have thought of auditioning for it myself. Katelyn Morishita, my former drama teacher at Western Canada High School, and Emily Howard, an actress I was at university with, told me I should audition. I took their word for it,' says Suart, who was last seen in Calgary in the Shakespeare Company's production of Richard III, which featured Bruce Horak. Article content Article content 'It's such an iconic role. It's an incredible challenge. We're doing Matthew's Gospel version as adapted by Royal Sproule. Nathan Schmidt, who is playing Matthew, played Jesus years ago. He hasn't given me any tips and tricks, but he has nodded at me and patted me on my back, which tells me I'm doing something right. I really get the feeling that the entire cast has my back.' Article content Article content This is the third year the Passion Play has used the Matthew Gospel because it has proven so popular with audiences. Matthew was initially vilified because he was a tax collector, known as Levi. This is why he understood the plight of the prostitute Mary Magdalene. They were both outsiders whom Jesus welcomed into his inner circle, as symbols of his love and acceptance of everyone. Article content 'The one thing I learned very quickly is that this is a very physical role. There are three hills I have to run up and down. By the end of the summer, I am going to be in the best shape I've been in for a long while. I'm grateful for the time when I get to ride on the donkey.' Article content Suart, who was raised Catholic, says his religion has given him a proximity to the story. Article content 'Jesus was the ultimate outsider. That's what I share with him. I'm coming into a group that has been working together for 30 years. I'm the manager of a restaurant, who is getting to play one of the most iconic roles imaginable. People keep asking me how my Jesus will be different. I tell them that the last few actors who played Jesus had long straight hair. The longer my hair grows, the curlier it gets, so they're going to see a curly-haired Jesus. The story is the same. The script we're using is the same. It will just be a physical thing. I do think I bring a smile and warmth to my characterization.' Article content This year, the Badlands Arts Centre has completed a new indoor space that can be used year-round. Eventually, it will be used for a winter Nativity event, telling the birth of Christ. It will have a 270-degree projection wall that will be used for a Passion Play digital experience.
19-06-2025
Un renard euthanasié pour un cas de rage à Ottawa
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... In a moment that captures the spirit of our cultural age, comedian Stephen Colbert recently celebrated the casting of Cynthia Erivo as Jesus in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl. The talk show host, who frequently touts his Roman Catholic faith, called the casting 'long overdue.' Erivo, a bald, black, self-described bisexual British actress who uses 'they/them' pronouns, will become the first woman to portray Jesus in a major production of the musical. Colbert struggled to contain his excitement. But what, precisely, is being celebrated? Colbert's enthusiasm is not an isolated gesture. This is reflective of our cultural malaise whereby ideological agendas take precedence over truth and tradition. Just as in biblical times, idolatry remains a central feature of our age, perhaps even more pervasive and sophisticated. Today it is not the worship of carved statues but the elevation of progressive ideologies that seek to displace God. Essential truths are not merely ignored but actively reimagined under the banner of diversity, equity, and inclusion, along with appeals to creativity and progress. This is not, as some claim, an effort to give voice to the marginalized. Any astute observer of our culture can see that it is a theological distortion: a recasting of God in our own image to suit contemporary tastes and agendas. Even well-meaning thinkers who speak of faith or divine truth can fall into this trap when God is reduced to an abstract or subjective principle. Jesus is not a figure to be reshaped according to personal or cultural preferences. He is a historical person. Apart from those who seek to subvert Christianity, we must remember that Jesus is neither a Jungian archetype nor an abstract object. He is the incarnation of the second person of the Holy Trinity (God the Son), who is fully divine and fully human. He is a person who entered into our world at a specific moment in history, through specific people, in an actual and physical body. This is not some metaphor. It is a concrete event, despite being mysterious and miraculous, that occurred in human history. And as such, the Incarnation is not something we are free to reshape to fit current cultural trends that cater to identity politics. It is an eternal truth that stands at the heart of Christian faith and has direct consequences for our salvation. Therefore, a Jesus who is not male, not Jewish, and not rooted in the world of first-century Galilee is simply not the Jesus we find in the Gospels nor one who has the power to redeem. Therefore, a Jesus who is not male, not Jewish, and not rooted in the world of first-century Galilee is simply not the Jesus we find in the Gospels nor one who has the power to redeem. Tweet This To envision what is truly at stake here, let's consider the thought of the early Church Fathers. The early Church Fathers understood this with clarity. They taught that redemption is directly tied to what Christ took on in becoming human. As St. Gregory of Nazianzus put it, 'That which He has not assumed He has not healed; but that which is united to His Godhead is also saved.' In other words, Jesus had to 'take on' the fullness of human nature in order to heal and redeem it. His intervention was not a symbolic gesture or a selective act. It was a real and singular event in human history, an act of love that touches every part of who we are. St. Gregory argued that Jesus was fully human in every way except for sin. For those who affirm free will, sin is not intrinsic to human nature but a contingent possibility. It is an immoral action rather than a necessary feature of what it means to be human. Jesus is the perfect human, so sin would make us in some sense subhuman. St. Gregory articulated this view in response to the fourth-century heresy of Apollinarianism, a heresy that taught that Jesus had a human body and soul but lacked a rational human mind. (Apollinaris claimed that Christ had solely a divine mind.) Gregory opposed this, insisting that if Christ did not assume a rational human mind, then that aspect of humanity would remain unsaved. This view was officially condemned at the First Council of Constantinople in 381, thereby affirming the Church's commitment to the full humanity of Christ. Given the Church Fathers' emphasis on assumption under the context of undertaking a complete human nature, this theological insight has profound implications. If Jesus had to assume every aspect of human nature in order to redeem it, then His maleness is not an unplanned feature but essential to the Incarnation. Jesus being born a first-century Jewish male was not as a cultural accident but part of God's intentional plan. His maleness is embedded in the typological, covenantal, and sacramental structure of salvation history. He is the New Adam who undoes the sin of the first man (Romans 5:12-21). He is the Bridegroom (John 3:29) who lays down His life for the Church, His Bride. He is the eternal High Priest who offers the perfect sacrifice (Hebrews 4:14-16). These roles define the order of salvific history and are not haphazard or decided by contingent socio-cultural events. They are grounded in the revealed logic of Scripture and the theological identity of Christ. The mere suggestion that Jesus could have been incarnated as a woman repudiates God's plan and the purpose of Incarnation; it controverts sound theological doctrine. It is important for modern ears to realize that this is not a question of dignity or value but of doctrinal coherence. Jesus did not assume a generic human nature. He assumed a specific human nature—including a rational mind, a male body, and a historical-cultural identity—to redeem the whole of humanity through that particularity. Altering His identity, even in the name of artistic expression or inclusion, misrepresents the very nature of salvation. To reinterpret Christ's identity, such as portraying Him as a woman, is not a harmless artistic liberty. It undermines the theological coherence of the Incarnation and risks leading people into error about who Christ is and what He came to do. Without a doubt, Jesus Christ Superstar has always been problematic. From its debut in the 1970s, the rock opera reduced the Gospel to existential angst and human misunderstanding, portraying Judas as a tragic hero and downplaying, if not outright denying, the Resurrection. But what we are seeing now is a much deeper level of desecration. Jesus is being remodelled in the image of postmodern identity politics, under the guise of inclusion and progress. In Erivo's own words, this is 'a very special thing.' Yes, but not for the reasons she or Colbert imagine. This is the crowning of a new secular dogma based on the teachings of the LGBTQIA2S+ movement. The Jesus of this production is not the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. In the eyes of postmodern ideology, Jesus is no longer the Savior but a symbol of inclusivity and rebellion. It is the Gospel emptied of its theological content and rebranded as therapeutic theatrics. But no amount of musical talent or vocal range can compensate for the loss of truth. An ideologically-shaped Christ is as distant from the one true Christ as Heaven is from Hell. It is not entirely surprising that Colbert would express such views, given that he has long distanced himself from traditional Catholic teaching. In truth, it is unclear which doctrines he actually upholds, especially considering his public association with figures like the heterodox Fr. James Martin. The deeper concern, however, lies in the fact that Colbert identifies as Catholic. For those unfamiliar with the Church's actual teachings, both within and outside its visible boundaries, this can be deeply misleading and may lead many into confusion about what the Catholic Faith truly affirms. Yet the confusion he represents is not unique. It is symptomatic of a Church, especially in the West, that has grown silent, ambiguous, and compromised in the face of cultural pressure. We are told that to resist this is to be hateful, bigoted, or backward thinking. However, emotions or social trends do not dictate what is true. Insisting on portraying Jesus as male does not diminish the dignity of women or those struggling with issues related to identity. But rather, it is to affirm the logic and truth of the Gospel. Jesus came to fulfill the Scriptures not conform to the shifting demands of the age. These roles are not arbitrary. They are deeply embedded in the typology and logic of divine revelation. To ignore these roles is not merely to play with aesthetics. It is to tamper with the meaning of salvation itself. This latest production at the Hollywood Bowl will attract applause, media coverage, and predictable denunciations of anyone who dares to question it. However, we Christians must resist the pressure to remain silent. Our judgment of falsehoods does not stem from our disdain for beauty or creativity or because we harbor resentment toward our opponents. On the contrary, we honor truth and beauty by preserving their proper intrinsic value. We must speak the truth out of love for those we disagree with and those who persecute us. As Pope Benedict XVI recognized, art and beauty must always be at the service of truth; otherwise, they risk becoming extravagant public debauchery, as in the case of the upcoming Jesus Christ Superstar , which serves to mask a theological void—the absence of any serious engagement with the Incarnation, the Cross, and the Resurrection. As Christians, who affirm that Jesus is Lord, we must reject all the misrepresentations of Him. And we should do so peacefully but with clarity, courage, and compassion at the service of truth. Part of rescuing this downward-spiralling culture is to reclaim the sacred from the hands of those desecrating it. Jesus was crucified not for being inclusive or symbolic but for the exact opposite: for declaring Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. That's why people rejected Him. Humans, in their fallen nature, have a propensity to turn away from truth. Perhaps that is the most ironic twist of all. In seeking to make Jesus relatable in our troubled times, Colbert and company have merely joined the chorus that once shouted, 'Crucify Him!' But the true Christ remains unchanged: 'Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever' (Hebrews 13:8).
