I just finished reading this play, written in 1998 by Terrence McNally. You may remember the giant amount of controversy caused by the fact that it is a biblical allegory about a homosexual jesus figure and his life. I read it becaue it was assigned to me in my acting class as my next play from which to perform a monologue.

I had very high hopes for the play, especially since I'm always intrigued by social dramas and allegories, and the premise allowed for deep analysis of the human condition and the pinciples of Jesus.

However, the play was honestly not very good. It was entertaining and had loads of promise, but McNally, whose work I usually like (Love! Valour! Compassion! is a great play) really dissapointed me here. He used humor effectively in the first part of the play, but as it got more serious he never really stopped the jokes, nearly ruining any sort of effectiveness the play might have had. It was bad enough that dick jokes were in the play, but to have within pages of the crucifixion scene was not only poor taste, but poor writing as well, and the somber tone I hoped for at the end was completely non-existent.

I understand the reason for the controversy, but it doesn't bother me. What bothers me is the fact that what could have been an effective piece of allegorical and social drama ended up being another play that did lots, but said nothing. All in all, very dissapointing.

bump

lol

This thread just got more action in 5 minutes than it did in nearly 6 years.