Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Touring company takes zany look at the Bible
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "The world-famous Reduced Shakespeare Company will close the 2008 season at the Mountain Playhouse performing its zany show, 'The Bible: The Complete Word of God (Abridged)' beginning Wednesday."
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5 comments:
This must be an extremely delicate process to separate the core stories of the bible and take it away from the religious connotations. I'm sure some crazed religious groups will get angry over a lot of it, but the counter arguments from more laid-back religious groups will provide some interesting insights.
"It's a nonsensical, hilarious look at the stories of the Bible. It's at breakneck pace, very much like vaudeville," she says. "It's not poking fun at anyone's faith. It's poking fun at the stories of the Bible."
I am a bit unsure on how to look at this article... it doesnt poke fun at peoples religion it just makes fun of the Bible..? Alright.. well that makes it all better! I am honestly not one to be religious.. but I think this might be sacreligious.. I mean its not directly making fun of the Bible but it is funny, AND children shouldnt see it? OK! I agree with how delicate the process must be and I am still a little unsure of how to critic this show.
I agree with the above poster, however, I think this is fantastic. All to often do we treat religion with such delicacy and reverence. Sometimes we need to learn how to accept it as just another facet of culture, of society, and not some sort of taboo subject.
A comedic rendition of Biblical stories sounds hilarious. Some of them are so fantastical, so out there, I can't imagine how great the new stagings would be. Come on, really, Moses parted an ocean? Oh that's going to be fantastic.
There was a show recently off Broadway that portrayed the story of Noah's Arc. They were able to mount a performance that was not offensive in any way, but still comically told the story and was well recieved. Good luck!
I've seen The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged a couple times, which is also a product of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, and it is absolutely hilarious. I would love to see another show from the same people. I'm not a religious person, but I think that even if I were I would not be worried about the show offending audiences. Nobody is making fun of Judeo-Christian beliefs or practices. I don't think there's anything wrong with a humorous retelling of well-known stories.
I'm really glad to hear that in a modern time when everyone is afraid of being a little offensive, someone is still willing to take the risk and have fun with religion. I have a minor issue with the article saying that "It's not poking fun at anyone's faith. It's poking fun at the stories of the Bible." since I'm willing to bet there are enough devote Catholics in the world who actually might take offense to this.
I do find it interesting that this is happening during an election year, specifically an election year that has seen some fairly odd stuff revolving around religious views (those of you who accuse Obama of being Muslim, I'm talking about you). Its odd that despite how much many people integrate religions (specifically the Catholic Church) into their lives, it's still not generally ok to make fun of it.
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