Passion Play set to mesmerise
THE Durban Catholic Players’ Guild will present the 15th Durban Passion Play at the Playhouse Drama Theatre from March 25 to April 12.
Dubbed the “Oberammergau of Africa”, the play strives to restore the true meaning of Easter, depicting Jesus’ passion from his visit to Jerusalem to his execution by crucifixion and ending with the Resurrection.
It is performed by a 150-plus cast who volunteer their time and skills for a seven-month commitment. The cast is a diverse group of people from different faiths, cultures and language groups and varies from toddlers and teenagers to the elderly. There are also multigenerational family groups, with the older members having performed on more than one occasion. Some of the cast have performed in more than eight productions. This year there are two men who will share the role of the Christus: Dale Collings is a new cast member and is finding the role both challenging and deeply rewarding. Rob Paul played the Christus in 2000 and returns with a deeply devout understanding of the responsibility of the role. The play is directed by Dawn Haynes and Derek Griffin who have been working on the script and training the actors for more than 18 months. Both agree that the hard work and hundreds of hours are well worth it.
The first Passion Play in Durban was performed in 1952, when the mayor and community of Oberammergau in Bavaria granted special permission to the Durban Catholic Players’ Guild to stage an abridged version of their worldfamous production.
That first play, enacted at the Greyville Racecourse, was so successful that Durban’s Father Noel Coughlan travelled to Bavaria to gain permission for the Durban version of the play to be staged every five years. The Oberammergau village elders willingly obliged, seeing the play as a means of witnessing to the larger population of Southern Africa: Durban would become the “Oberammergau of Africa”.
The show runs from Tuesday to Sunday at 7pm with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2.30pm. Ticket costs are R100, R120 and R150 from Webtickets or the Playhouse box office. For block bookings, call Dominic Sandiah on 082 460 7677.