sun 01/12/2024

The Globe Mysteries at Shakespeare’s Globe | reviews, news & interviews

The Globe Mysteries at Shakespeare’s Globe

The Globe Mysteries at Shakespeare’s Globe

If you thought Bible stories were just for Sunday school, think again

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If you thought Bible stories were just for Sunday school, think again. Shakespeare’s Globe - the open-air reproduction of the original “wooden O” on London’s Bankside where past and present collide and eager groundlings jostle in the Yard for the best view - is bringing them to vibrant life in this summer’s revival of The Mysteries. Based on medieval dramas created by guildsmen in York, Wakefield, Chester and Coventry, poet and playwright Tony Harrison first tackled The Mysteries for the National Theatre in 1977 and has adapted his iconic version to create The Globe Mysteries - featuring no fewer than 60 characters played by an energetic cast of 14, and telling a range of biblical stories from The Creation to Doomsday. But do modern audiences really want to listen to a sermon from the Middle Ages?

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If you thought Bible stories were just for Sunday school, think again. Shakespeare’s Globe - the open-air reproduction of the original “wooden O” on London’s Bankside where past and present collide and eager groundlings jostle in the Yard for the best view - is bringing them to vibrant life in this summer’s revival of The Mysteries. Based on medieval dramas created by guildsmen in York, Wakefield, Chester and Coventry, poet and playwright Tony Harrison first tackled The Mysteries for the National Theatre in 1977 and has adapted his iconic version to create The Globe Mysteries - featuring no fewer than 60 characters played by an energetic cast of 14, and telling a range of biblical stories from The Creation to Doomsday. But do modern audiences really want to listen to a sermon from the Middle Ages?

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