Jesus playing the role of European culture. An actor playing the role of Jesus. Actors who have nothing to do with the actor playing the role of Jesus. Theatrical provocateurs and free speech preachers who hold nothing sacred. Faithful Christians and muscular defenders of the true faith. Legal experts, media prophets... A Muslim woman. All of the above stormed through Goose on a String Theatre – and subsequently the media of the allegedly most atheist country in Europe – during the guest performance of Oliver Frljić's play in Brno in 2018. Four years later, the time has come to smoke out and cleanse both the stage and the media landscape. We need to return to where it all began – to the theatre.
A furiously cathartic stage ceremony, based on real events surrounding an unreal case in which Czech society was cast in the main role, brings to the stage fragments of legal texts, online articles and interviews, audience letters, witness statements and the New Testament. In doing so, it attempts to answer a host of questions which linger to this day.
What demons sow division within our society, separating it into warring camps – and why? Are we capable of reconciling our identities, all of which seem to require an adversary, with one another? Can the language of faith, for which Jesus is the saviour, be reconciled with the language of art, for which he is a metaphor, without resorting to judicial proceedings?
About the company
Goose on a String Theatre - a stage for contemporary themes and unexpected formats
This is an art movement whose origins can be traced back to the late 1960s. Since 1967, the theatre has brought together theatre people, writers, musicians and artists, for whom art is a way of life and the creation of art is a privilege.
This theatre movement is characterized by its emphasis on developing a unique heritage of ‘irregular dramaturgy’, the power of the imagination, and shared physicality.
In its work, the theatre builds on freedom of expression, openness to dialogue and plurality of opinion, and, by way of its productions, it strives to spread these values and cultivate Central European civil society.
Today, Goose on a String Theatre occupies a unique place on the map of European theatre and its award-winning productions are regularly hosted at festivals in the Czech Republic and abroad.
