Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #183605 in Books
• Published on: 2006-01-27
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 128 pages

Customer Reviews

Unexpected and Brilliant!
I ordered this play because I am writing my own play about Judas and I wanted to find out as much as I could about the guy as possible and see various viewpoints.
This play blew me away because it was beyond anything that I could have expected. The play is set in Purgatory, a downtown New York setting, and a lot of the characters fit in with its location. Saint Peter is a docks worker, St Maria is a very bad-mouthed hooker. And it all works! I didn't find myself thinking that the language was inappropriate or anything, I just went along with it.
Most of the play is set in a courtroom setting, and all of the characters there are fascinating from the judge to the prosecution to defendant to the various witnesses and experts. A particular favourite character was Satan - a sentence I never thought I'd write! Guirgis has written Satan in a way that challenges what you know or think you know about religion in a very clever way.
There is also a very beautiful scene between Jesus and Judas, talking about Judas' fate. It's so well-written and moving, but I won't give anything away!

As Guirgis explains at the beginning of the book, he wrote the play to explore what he believes and in doing so you will explore your own belief.