THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN POSTPONED BECAUSE OF THE REGULATIONS IMPOSED BY THE CORONA VIRUS.
The Durban Catholic Players’ Guild will present the 15th Durban Passion Play - the “Oberammergau of Africa” – in the Playhouse Drama Theatre from March 25 until April 12, 2020.
The Durban Catholic Players’ Guild will present the 15th Durban Passion Play - the “Oberammergau of Africa” – in the Playhouse Drama Theatre from March 25 until April 12, 2020.
The Passion
Play strives to restore the true meaning of Easter. It is an epic scale
dramatic production depicting Jesus' passion, covering the final period of his
life from his visit to Jerusalem to his execution by crucifixion and ending
with the Resurrection. It is performed by a large cast who volunteer their time
and skills as part of their Lenten preparations. The play involves seven months
of commitment from a 130-plus cast who receive no remuneration.
The cast comprises an inter-denominational,
inter-faith, multi-cultural, multi-lingual group of diverse people who vary in
age from toddlers and teenagers to young adults and the more mature; able
bodied and differently abled. There are also multi-generational family groups,
with the older members having performed on multiple occasions (some of the cast
members have performed in more than eight productions - which means they have
been performing for more than 40 years!) and the younger performing in their
first Passion Play.
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 the
2000 staging and is returning 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 world-famous
production. What was first enacted in 1634 in Oberammergau was used in Durban
as a means of celebrating the centenary of the arrival of the missionary Oblate
priests of Mary Immaculate, who arrived in South Africa in 1852.
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”.
It has now been staged in Durban every five
years for the past 64 years. The Durban
Passion Play was staged at the Greyville Racecourse, before moving to the
Durban City Hall until 1997. More recently it has been performed at the
Playhouse.
The Durban
Passion Play runs in the Playhouse Drama from March 25 to April 12, 2020. There
are day-time and evening performances. Public booking is through Webtickets.
Block bookings and entire performances can be purchased through Dominic Sandiah
on 082 460 7677.
There is ONE performance of the Durban
Passion Play in Durban which will be Signed for members of the audience who are
hearing impaired. This will take place on April 4 at 14h30. Tickets for this
Signed performance can also be purchased through Webtickets. For anyone wishing
to purchase tickets for a block booking for this performance, this can be
organised through Dominic Sandiah on 082 460 7677 or email:
anthony@anthonysandiah.co.za