In her book "Passion," originally published in 2020 as "Soif" (Thirst), Belgian author Amélie Nothomb imagines herself as a young man experiencing the last night before his execution on Golgotha: Jesus of Nazareth. Alone in his cell, he reflects on his journey there and everything that follows.
In Nothomb's fictional inner monologue, Jesus speaks of his miracles, his great love, betrayal, and his overwhelming thirst for dignity and forgiveness. "Jesus has never felt so close to me," says actor Götz Schubert about his feelings after reading this book. The monologue so captivated him, indeed gripped him so deeply, that he adapted the powerful text for the stage.
In a special performance format, Schubert gives Nothomb's Jesus an impressive voice and presence in the village church of Cunewalde. Oboist and producer Manuel Munzlinger has created a soundtrack that combines electronic sounds with a live oboe performance. The duo calls the evening a musical radio play, as they inextricably weave music, text and acting together into a multifaceted Gesamtkunstwerk (total work of art).
