Pentecost, Winter 2004
Pentecost
by David Edgar
Presented in Thurber
Theatre
Directed by Jonathan Putnam
February 25 at 7:30 PM
February 26-28, March 2-6 at 8 PM
February 28 at 2 PM
Set in an abandoned church in an unnamed eastern European country, Pentecost brings together art and politics. The country (and the church) has seen various conquerors and religions leave their mark, the last being the Soviet-style government that only recently collapsed. The native art curator Gabriella Pecs brings British art historian Oliver Davenport to the church, suggesting that behind its walls is a painting that appears to be by Giotto.
As the play progresses, the walls slowly come down and the painting is revealed; evidence about its authenticity is weighed. Edgar presents a tantalizing puzzle, the answers changing as more pieces are revealed. A clash of cultures surrounds the debate as others come to the church: local priests, tourists, and a motley assortment of refugees from many of the world’s trouble spots who wind up taking everyone hostage in an effort to gain asylum.
David Edgar is one of Britain's major political playwrights, best known for his Tony Award-winning adaptation of Nicholas Nickelby and its internationally acclaimed production and tour.
Related Event: “Pentecost: A Forum on Eastern
Europe”
February 27, 4:00 – 5:45 pm
Blackwell
Hotel and Conference Center
Meeting Room 340
Free Event
Scholars and production artists discuss Eastern Europe,
the political arena, and terrorism, in light of David Edgar’s play Pentecost.
Co-sponsored by the Center
for Slavic and East European Studies and the Department
of Slavic and East European Languages and Literatures.
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