By Kyle Greenwood
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot is not a perfect play, and not every role in the Blueprint Masquerades’ production of it is played to perfection. But therein lies the crux of this deceptively witty piece: we’re all fundamentally flawed, right? We’re only human, after all.
As the action unfolds, and we are witness to the trial of Judas Iscariot’s immortal soul, it is this timeless truth that hits home hardest. As the catatonic Judas’ family and friends, along with an array of expert witnesses, are called to the stand to give evidence for or against his treachery, the real, historical context of ancient Judea under the unusually brutal rule of Rome slowly comes into focus. And, as each character’s testimony is cross-examined by opposing counsel, the validity of the judgments history has made on all these individuals – Pontius Pilate, St. Matthew, Mary Magdalene, Mother Theresa – is called into question. Each of them earns our admiration and our scorn, although perhaps not all in the same measures. None of them is unimpeachable.
Working with biblical source text is a delicate task, and for the most part Stephen Adly Guirgis’ script is both surgical in its precision and inventive in its characterizations. Breathing life and sympathy into characters most people associate with deeply unpleasant childhood memories of Sunday morning is a challenge any writer should relish. Guirgis does so with aplomb. The script does, however, occasionally fall into the trap of being too irreverent: Judas’ and St. Monica’s potty-mouthed monologues at times feel more gratuitous than grungy.
This sensation may also be a result of what may be the greatest weakness of this otherwise clever, entertaining show: it’s set in New York, and several of the characters’ lines demand to be read in an authentic accent. One must consider, however, that Blueprint Masquerades, the University of Zurich’s English-language theatre group, is comprised almost entirely of non-native speakers. Also, on several occasions, the show draws strength from this dislocation of dialect – the star turns of Simon the Zealot and Caiaphas come to mind, as well as a deliciously risible appearance by Sigmund Freud himself.
As is to be expected from amateur theater, not every line is pitch perfect, but there are a number of seriously impressive performers in this piece whose efforts alone are worth the price of admission. Add to that a well-researched, intriguing script that oscillates between gold-spun erudition and raucous sailor-speak, and The Last Days of Judas Iscariot proves itself to be a more than worthy addition to Switzerland’s English-language theater scene.
ENGLISH THEATRE IN ZURICH 