Independence: Passion play to get Scottish twist

Duncan Rennie will lead the cast in a play inspired by the political landscape. Picture: Colin Hattersley

THE names of the characters may be instantly recognisable and there is something very familiar about the storyline.

But the open-air play to be staged in the heart of Edinburgh on Easter Saturday will be far removed from the classic story charting the last days of Christ.

The story is to be retold against the background of a nation in turmoil over a looming referendum – in an alternate reality version of modern-day Scotland where mass unrest under Herod’s weakening grip has become the norm.

But organisers insist they are making strenuous efforts to ensure Jesus is not portrayed as a supporter of Scottish independence and say that the character will remain above politics.

It is hoped that thousands of people will turn out in Princes Street Gardens for the free promenade performance of the modern version of The Passion Play, set more than 2,000 years on from the traditional version.

In The Edinburgh Passion, the political power-plays in the Bible will be updated to feature media monitoring, spin doctors, financial backstabbing and even lethal injections to deal with the “dangerous insurgent” and his radical ideas.

With the corrupt leadership of the country struggling to maintain its grip on power, amid angry demonstrations over the “collapse of society”, and Scotland in the grip of a crime wave, the rise of Jesus is seen as a major threat to desperate political efforts to maintain the status quo.

The producers – who are still looking for their modern-day Judas – admit the present-day political turmoil has influenced the show, which is said to be set “in the near future” in Scotland.

Director Suzanne Lofthus, who has overseen a number of traditional Easter plays in Edinburgh, said: “We’ve had as many as 4,500 people along in the past but the numbers were tailing off a bit and we wanted to do something that would generate a bit more interest. The story of Jesus is a story for all times, as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago.