‘Passion Play’: back on stage after 5 years
Denzil Deane seen as Christus in the Durban Passion Play, a highlight on the theatre calendar over the coming Easter break.
New Dawn Park’s Denzil Deane has big sandals to fill in the role of Christus in the ‘Durban Passion Play’, writes Latoya Newman
ONCE every five years the Durban Passion Play brings to stage the re-enactment of the story behind the meaning of Easter and this year marks the show’s comeback.
With a cast of 150, the production depicts the Christian story of the passion of Jesus Christ, covering the final days of his life.
Directed by Dawn Haynes and Tanya Conradie, the first Passion Play in Durban was performed in 1952 by special permission granted by the mayor and community of Oberammergau in Bavaria to the Durban Catholic Players’ Guild to stage an abridged version of their world famous Passion Play. It has now been staged every five years for the past 63 years.
Tonight spoke with Denzil Deane (pictured) who takes on the role of Christus, which was the role he played when he first joined the cast in 2011.
“Being a Christian, you understand the role that you are playing. At first I definitely had a challenge accepting that I could be worthy of portraying this role. Also, knowing how popular the story is – whether you’re Christian or not, most people know about the story of Jesus. So it was also a challenge of looking and portraying the part
Article source: http://www.iol.co.za/tonight/what-s-on/kwazulu-natal/passion-play-back-on-stage-after-5-years-1.1836257