|
| Christian news worldwide |
 Home |
 Archives |
 Subscriptions |
 Adverts |
 Find a church |
 About us |
 Contact us |
 Site Map |
 PrintableVersion Last supperMaking a meal of a masterpiece!LAST SUPPER It was a balmy summer evening when I pulled into the church car park to enjoy a black tie dinner theatre event. The beautifully dressed people were ushered into a beautifully dressed room, where we were seated at our tables and served a starter and main course by waiters and waitresses in black and white (the youth group!). And then the lights dimmed and the play began. Faith issuesLast Supper, by Tim Thornborough, was specially written to create ‘an opportunity to discuss faith issues with friends in a relaxed atmosphere’ (as was clearly stated on the flyer promoting the evening). The play focuses on the life of Leonardo da Vinci and allows us a glimpse into what his life may have been like in his final days. Says Tim of his play: ‘His earliest biographer, Vasari, says that in the last days of his life, Leonardo took instruction in the Christian faith, and died a believer. This play is my attempt to dig into the question of why someone who was so obviously disgusted with the church should become a Christian in the last few days of his life. Its themes are old age, achievement, death and eternity. Even for a man of enormous talent and achievement like Leonardo, the question still haunts most thinking people at the end of their lives: ‘What was that all about?’ ‘What will remain of me when I’m gone?’’ The play takes place in Leonardo’s studio in France — unfinished paintings surround the room, sketches and ideas fill his notebook, which is always close to hand. His housekeeper potters around making sure the place is in order and that he is never without something to eat. Different motivesBut when a couple of unexpected visitors show up who have travelled from Milan specifically to speak to Leonardo about his Last Supper painting, things take an ugly turn which leads to a moving and emotional crisis of faith — or rather a crisis of lack of faith — for Leonardo. The experience leads him to wrestle with the questions he has about God, the church, his talents and what he is to do with the ideas that inspire him. At the conclusion of the play, some facts about what happened after Leonardo’s death are projected onto the wall above the studio for the audience to read, allowing for an intellectual, thought-provoking response to the events that have just unfolded before them. The play is set in 1519, just a few months after Luther has nailed his 95 theses to the door of Wittenburg cathedral. The corruption in the established Catholic church, and the disattisfaction with it by the general population of the day is clearly characterised and portrayed through the characters. And Leonardo’s moments of raw reflection on what his life and work has amounted to — has he betrayed God, has his whole life amounted to failure and decay like his Last Supper painting? — allow the audience to empathise with him in asking the difficult but important questions that often can be left to the end of our lives. Dessert with cheese and coffee followed the play, and there was a healthy buzz of discussion as people talked about the ideas which we had just seen. One interesting outcome was that the play worked rather like Jesus’s parables. Some just enjoyed it for the surface story, and what it taught them about Leonardo and the Last Supper. They went away happy, having enjoyed a pleasant evening, and the door is left open for the future. Others ‘had ears to hear’ and talked about the themes of meaning, purpose in life, and how death can rob us of our achievements. It delivers the challenge of Ecclesiastes. People in the back rowOur churches are used to staging more full-on evangelistic events where the gospel is preached and a challenge given to follow Christ or commit to the process of learning Christ in a course like Christianity Explored. This kind of event is often missing from our line up, however. It is for people further back who have yet to have their consciences stirred, or their minds focussed on the ultimate questions of life. They are also the kind of people who need reassurance that church is not weird, and that Christians are normal thinking people, who know how to have fun and enjoy themselves. This evening of dinner theatre achieved all these aims. Although the chosen setting for this performance was very formal in nature, the play is intended to be used as an outreach tool throughout the Christian community. The concept of having it as part of a dinner theatre allows a church or organisation which has invited the group in to do the play to set the tone appropriate for the intended target audience — be it casual, black-tie or otherwise. Naomi PhilippiIf your church is interested in putting on Last Supper, please contact Jules Hall of Back2Front Theatre (jules@moultonhall. co.uk) for more details. © Evangelicals Now - August 2010 |
|
