Throughout the Catholic Church's history, the Passion Play has been a Lenten staple. This year, St. Francis of Assisi parish is doing things differently.
Tomorrow night, the church's college students will put on a production of the Broadway musical "Godspell" at 8 p.m. at St. Francis of Assisi Church, located at 1200 W Riverside.
The script is drawn from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, according to the production's Web site. What sets "Godspell" apart from every other play about Christ is the way in which the life of Jesus is presented.
"The play was originally written for clowns," Ball State junior Emily Avery, who is directing the play, said. "It's bringing back the lightheartedness instead of the fire and brimstone."
Avery said "Godspell" emphasizes the fellowship between Jesus and his disciples. "It's about community and conversion into a community," she said.
It's also about individuality as the cast members were allowed to select their own costumes, dressing their characters as they saw fit. Jesus, for example, wears short hair and red Converse All-Stars and John the Baptist is dressed in a sailor suit.
Ball State senior Kyle Cothern plays Jesus in the production.
"The spirit of 'Godspell' is very modern-day; we're trying to emphasize the more approachable side of Jesus," he said.
The "Godspell" actors aren't the only Catholics showing how Christ can be portrayed in a contemporary way. The old solemn mass has gone through some significant modernizations as well.
"A lot of it changed in the '60s with Vatican II. Before that, everything used to be in Latin and the priest had his back to the people," St. Francis' Head of Right of Christian Initiation of Adults, Doris Rhea, said.
Now a typical mass at St. Francis features guitars and drums, musical elements which Rhea said make the service more accessible to college-age people.
"You're more involved at church on Sundays. The music is an important part of mass; it makes it so beautiful," Rhea said.
The location of the St. Francis' production of "Godspell" is itself a testimony to the church's progressive approach to worship.
"We're putting on the production in the worship space. A lot of places wouldn't allow that," Rhea said.
Rhea said most Catholic churches are more traditional and still use organs instead of guitars.
"We are a parish for college students," St. Francis Campus Minister, Debi Haug, said.
Haug said tomorrow's "Godspell" production is a good way to make people aware of what St. Francis is all about.
"It's a way of showing that we are welcoming to other faiths. It's just a nice outreach," she said.
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