Controversial Corpus Christi plays in OKC

OKC Theatre Company brings one of the most controversial plays of the last two decades, Terrence McNally’s Corpus Christi, to the Civic Center in its Oklahoma debut March 20-April 4.

The play begins: "We are going to tell you an old and familiar story." Although the plot follows a framework loosely based on the story of Jesus, McNally's Christ figure is named Joshua, a young man born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Different from the other boys because he is gay, Joshua grows up in isolation. He flees in search of acceptance, gathering followers along the way, but, inevitably, his radical teachings (like Jesus') will not deliver him from his fate. His plea, that we look upon all souls as equal in the sight of God, falls unattended.

While Time Magazine called it “one of McNally's best, most moving works,” the play received death threats from conservative groups during its 1998 New York debut. The play went ahead as scheduled, and McNally wrote, “at the same time that we were all feeling so good about overcoming these forces of ignorance and prejudice, a young man in Laramie, Wyoming was losing his life to them…in a grotesque crucifixion he died as agonizing a death as another young man who had been tortured and nailed to a wooden cross some 1,998 years earlier. They died, and they lived, as brothers.”

Despite the serious themes, artistic director Rachel Irick says the audience will be delighted by many comic scenes. “When you uproot the Christ story and drop it into the land of cowboy boots and football rivalries, you’re going to find a lot to laugh about,” she said.

The play depicts scenes from Joshua’s youth including learning to throw a football, and taking a girl to a high school dance. When James Dean (Satan) appears, he is tempted to deny his divinity for earthly glory and carnal pleasures.

Irick says the play’s themes have deep meaning for her and hopes others feel the same. “How many of us were raised in church, those of us in Oklahoma and Texas? We all went to Sunday school and church camp where we learned about the love of Jesus. But somewhere along the way, we heard the message that Jesus wasn’t for us anymore. In a very profound way, McNally is giving Him back to us.”

Quoting McNally, “If a divinity does not belong to all people…then He is less a true divinity…Such a God is no God at all because He is exclusive to His members. Jesus Christ belongs to all of us because He is all of us. Unfortunately, not everyone believes that.”

Corpus Christi will have a $10 preview on March 19. Performances will be Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays March 20-April 4 with a matinee performance on March 29 (Palm Sunday). Tickets are available at www.myticketoffice.com or by calling the Civic Center Box Office at (405) 297-2264.

The Gayly – March 15, 2015 @ 5pm.