It’s Official: From June 29th to July 11th, Patrick Stewart Is God!
This summer, the atmospheric setting of English Heritage site Monk Bretton Priory in Barnsley will be transformed into an outdoor theatre for the UK’s only traditional outdoor Mystery Play of the year. Audiences can look forward to a fortnight of performances taking place from June 29 – July 11.
While the full line-up is yet to be revealed, internationally acclaimed Yorkshire-born actor Patrick Stewart, most famous for his roles with the RSC and in Star Trek and X-Men, has already signed up to play the voice of God.
“Mystery Plays played an important part in my childhood years in theatre in the North of England”, he explains. “I’m sure they will continue to be an inspiration to young people today.”
It is hoped that Patrick Stewart will be appearing personally for at least some of the two-week production, with filming commitments currently unconfirmed. While some pray for divine intervention, John Kelly is taking the precaution of recording his lines and filming his part ahead of production.
Local writer and broadcaster John Kelly has written, designed and directed the production. He is a man who clearly revels in the excitement of outdoor theatre:
“There’s something wonderful, exciting and utterly English about sitting, on a still summer’s eve, and watching a couple of hundred performers pick their way through the ruins of an ancient monastery and the most towering drama known to mankind.”
With over 200 members of cast and crew taking part, this is an outdoor experience of epic proportions. John’s unique vision sticks closely to the original principles of the plays, bringing together a range of talents, from community amateurs to acclaimed actors and celebrities.
Tickets & Practical Info
- Adults:£16.00
- Family: £50.00 (2 adults & 2 children)
- Concessions: £14.00 (children aged 16 & under and OAPs)
- Groups £12.00 (10 or more people)
- Tickets are available from The Lamproom Theatre, Westgate, Barnsley, or by telephoning the Ticket Hotline on 01226 321741.
- Groups and corporate hospitality packages are available.
- The play will start at 7.45pm and finish at approximately 10.30pm
- The play is generally suitable for all ages although the scourging and crucifixion are very harrowing and will be disturbing for very young children.
- Funded through the Arts Council, the English Mystery Plays is also receiving support from Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, English Heritage and Yorkshire South Tourism.
A brief history of the Mystery Play
Mystery Plays are dramas based on scriptural events, usually in the life of Jesus, but they have evolved as secular entertainments for popular consumption – they certainly aren’t devised to preach or offer religious instruction.
The Monk Bretton English Mystery Plays continue a tradition that goes back to medieval times. They were originally performed in church in the Middle Ages as embellishments of formal rituals.
They gradually moved from the church to the churchyard and marketplace and temporary stages. In 1210, when a papal edict forbade the clergy from appearing on stage in public, they began to be performed by local trade guilds who elaborated the scripts and developed the dramatic elements. These guilds were called ‘Mysterium’, hence ‘Mystery’ plays.
The plays grew, over the following centuries, into huge pageants. Some Cycles had as many as 40 plays and would take many days to perform. Some academics cite plays starting at 4.30am and, following several performances around the town on a cart, the exhausted players would finish by torchlight at midnight.
Many cycles became epic and the countless generations of anonymous writers introduced comedy and disrespectful themes into their work. Examples – A Mrs Noah, who won’t get into the ark until she is beaten, a drunken Noah who curses at his neighbours. A brainless Adam. A sheep stealer who brings high farce to the shepherds scene in the nativity.
Inevitably, many clerics threw the errant plays and players out of their churchyards and, as the Reformation arrived, the plays – seen as Catholic devices – lost some of their popularity and momentum.
It is recorded that Elizabeth’s spymaster, Walsingham, insisted that all scripts (such as they were) should be handed into local authorities for censorship against papist doctrine and other anti-liturgical content. It is believed that hundreds, if not thousands, of scripts were promptly burned.
Four cycles – or part cycles – did, however, survive. York, Wakefield, Chester and the oddly named, ‘N – Town’ plays are believed to be the only remaining 15th century sets of mystery plays in existence.
English mystery plays enjoyed something of a renaissance when they returned to the English stage during The Festival of Britain in 1951.York and Coventry have performed regular cycles during the past 50 years.
Tony Harrison’s ‘The Mysteries’, was a brilliant and highly successful National Theatre production which undoubtedly led to a revival in Mystery Play interest here in England and around the world. It is a commonly held academic notion that Shakespeare must have been influenced by the Mysteries that he undoubtedly saw as a child and young man.
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