Rosebud play asks life’s great questions

Times Contributor       

 

The Great Divorce, from C.S. Lewis’ fantasy novel, comes to Rosebud’s BMO Studio Stage, April 11. Adapted by Kelsey Krogman, the story is about Lewis himself, interacting with characters on a bus from Hell, hoping to get into Heaven.

Naomi Esau, third-year Rosebud School of the Arts (RSA) Theatre Arts major, says, “The Great Divorce asks the huge questions of what happens when we die, and what are Heaven and Hell going to be like.” She plays a character named Scowling. “All these different characters … have something that they’re holding on to, and that’s what’s keeping them from getting into Heaven.” But “there’s hope for all souls.”

Caleb Gordon, a second-year RSA Acting major, plays Lewis. “The message of the Great Divorce is summed up in one line, that there is no Heaven with even a little of Hell in it,” he says. “If there’s even a little bit of you that holds back from God, then you can’t get into Heaven.”

“The picture that Lewis presents is that Hell and Heaven are choices and they’re very clear choices,” he says, “so there’s grace and God gives you grace.”

“This play is important for people to see because we’re talking about something that makes people uncomfortable, the whole question of what happens after we die and what heaven may or may not be like,” Esau says. “It’ll spark conversations with people about what their faith means to them and how they agree with it … or don’t.”

The actors have already been impacted by the story. “The whole concept of letting go of things has really struck me,” Esau says. “It’s really impacting me how much (Scowling) thinks she loves and wants something so badly — that’s the thing she has to give up. … Things that I want so badly, those are the things I have to let go of in order to move forward.”

Gordon is impacted differently. “I’m a person who likes to know everything,” he says. “This play forces me to know nothing or to think I know everything but know nothing.” He’s also challenged by the concept that “at the end of the day, if you choose not to be in Heaven, it’s your choice. It’s not anyone else’s. It’s not because God put you there or you didn’t believe hard enough or you didn’t do the right things. It’s because you chose to be there.”

The play “sounds heavy, but it’s not,” Gordon says.

“These characters take themselves so seriously, that’s what makes it funny,” Esau says. “People will be able to look at these characters and go, I know someone like that. Or I’m like that.”

“I can see in each of those people an argument (for getting into Heaven) that I myself could make,” Gordon says, “Any of these arguments can be made by any of us.”

There’s also “one scene with unicorns that’s absolutely hilarious,” he says. “At one point, I exclaim very loudly,… ‘Unicorns! Run for cover!’”

The Great Divorce runs Thursdays to Saturdays, 4:30 p.m., April 11 to May 3 (except Good Friday). Get tickets at 1-800-267-7553 or www.rosebudschoolofthearts.com. $15 in advance, $20 at the door.