the great divorce fellowship for performing arts

Scott-Reed gives a particularly insightful, unnerving rendition of a ruthless social climber who drove her husband to a nervous breakdown, and whose idea of heaven is having him back under her thumb. The format gives the talented actors lots to do, and each of them rises superbly to the challenge. Under Bill Castellino’s imaginative direction, the show has an eerie, dreamlike quality that serves the material well. Performing on Kelly James Tighe’s simple but well-designed set-the grass alone, which pierces the visitors’ insubstantial feet, offers plenty of fodder for both physical comedy and dramatic effect-the three of them take turns narrating the action and playing various ghosts and spirits. Through a series of dialogues between the residents of hell and of heaven, the story explores age-old ideas about sin and redemption, and sets forth an intriguing premise: “All who are in hell choose it.”Īctors Michael Frederic, Joel Rainwater, and Christa Scott-Reed undertake the formidable task of bringing this often difficult work to life, playing 19 different characters in all. The answer is not as obvious as you might think. Part fantasy, part spiritual reflection, The Great Divorce (the title is a takeoff on William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell) posits that the damned can take a bus trip from hell to heaven, to see if they want to stay there. Lewis’ ‘The Great Divorce.’ Photo courtesy of Fellowship for the Performing Arts. Joel Rainwater, Christa Scott-Reed and Tom Beckett in FPA’s production of C.S. Lewis’ classic The Screwtape Letters into a two-character play, Max McLean and his group Fellowship for Performing Arts have gone for an even bigger challenge: adapting Lewis’s The Great Divorce into a three-character play, now playing at the Lansburgh Theatre.

The great divorce fellowship for performing arts