Messiah: Scenes from a Crucifixion

Synopsis

A radical and controversial retelling of Christ's life and death. Raw physical performances combine with searingly lyrical verse to create unforgettable theatre. The content is original and thought-provoking, with explorations of the idea of Christ as a revolutionary, planning and executing a daring plot to fulfill messianic prophecies and encourage the overthrow of the occupying Roman forces.

Our Review:

3 December 2003

Steven Berkoff has long been one of Britain's most distinctive but also infuriating theatrical talents - distinctive, because he spent the 1970s and 80s breaking down the doors (and flaws) of British acting by insisting that performing didn't consist of what happened from the neck up but instead reached far below it; but also infuriating, because the excesses of applying this technique have now reached epic and wearying proportions.

Instead of illuminating his potentially fascinating re-telling of the Jesus story, Messiah - Scenes from a Crucifixion is fatally undermined by the artificiality and indulgence of so much of the performance. While the actors bring an undeniable discipline and commitment to performing to Berkoff's constrained (but never restrained) vision, they cannot bring any personality to it beyond Berkoff's own. No wonder that his more successful recent efforts have largely been one-person shows.

Here, though Berkoff only makes a ...

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Latest User Review

USER: Whatsonstage.com (212.85.1.101) - 16 December 2003:

My partner and myself are both drama teachers with an interest in anything biased towards physical theatre. Naturally when we heard that a Berkoff piece was playing with the great man himself making an appearance, naturally we jumped at the chance to go. Oh dear. What a disappointment. The physicalisation of the chorus was excellent although a little too heavy handed and self aware at times. The script was all too verbose, which for a pioneer of british physical theatre is surely a contradiction in terms. Clearly not a writer for female character parts, Berkoff also subjected us to one of the most cringe-worthy monologues I have witnessed. The only thing it seemed the esteemed line up could do was overact the deeply unsubtle dialogue. As for Berkoff's acting itself; A ramble into the obvious about how Satan is a part of all of us with the luster of a failed and frustrated stand-up comic. As a fan of many of his plays I fell deeply short changed by this. If you want to learn more about the "spin" of the Jesus phenomena you'd do better to see JC Superstar, at least it has entertainment value....

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