WHY SHAW HESITATED
Drama of Trial of Christ
LONDON, Feb. 1
Mr. G. Bernard Shaw, in a preface to his latest volume of plays, including “On the Rocks,” explains why he never dramatised the trial of Jesus Christ.
‘‘The trial of a dumb prisoner can not be dramatised unless the judge n
the hero of the play, and Pilate, though a trifle above the average colonial Governor, was not an heroic figure,” says Shaw.
‘‘Jesus was an experienced public speaker, able to hold multitudes by his oratory, ready in debate with repartee, never at a loss when plied with questions, and full of the hypothetical cases beloved of lawyers, which are called parable in the Gospels. Yet he put up no fight. t
‘‘Such a spectacle would be disappointing on the stage when followed by the scourging and the crucifixion. ‘‘lt would be unbearable to present on the stage long speeches by Pilate and Jesus, setting out the respective cases.”
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Bibliographic details
Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 61, 22 February 1934, Page 7
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160WHY SHAW HESITATED Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 61, 22 February 1934, Page 7
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