the gospel of st luke according to bruce kuhn

bruce who?

i've read the rave reviews. i've heard from ...er... hearsay, that it's the ultimate one-man show. a compelling, unadulterated, & in-your-face recitation of luke, not the jedi but the doctor who wrote the gospel. i figure it would do the show no justice just reading or hearing about it, so i took it upon myself to pull a church friend along & we got tickets last saturday, near the end of its current run at the bangsar actors' studio.

after having been at the cavernous petronas auditorium before, i was pleasantly surprised at the cosy ambience at the bangsar stage - just 6 rows of seats, which i thought made a mockery of the disparity in prices. other than lowest-priced seats located at the sides of the stage, those that face the front should really cost the same, because they are all quite close to the stage. ah, just my 2 sen's worth....

bruce kuhn is obviously an experienced actor, having done les miserables & tolstoy previously & has been re-telling luke for 20yrs. anyone who can hold court for 90mins without props, fanciful stage clothes, back-up singers or musicians takes some beating & deserves a 2nd look. the lightings though, when appropriately directed, helped emphasise some decisive scenes eg. the appearance of the angel Gabriel & the crucifixion. i revere professionalism & admire spontaneity but an artiste exhibiting a photographic memory with matching facial expression & body language truly fascinates me. acting out the whole gospel of luke, literally word for word, & king james version at that?? the virtuoso's display in bringing the bible to life is no more a prediction. it's a fact & i'm a witness to it. simply put, i'm blown over.

in uncertain times like this when religious conflicts abound, i'm a little taken aback, & simultaneously glad, that this show was allowed to be widely publicised & staged, without the pre-condition "for non-muslims only" tagged to it. i hear that bibles were handed out freely in the the american series & the accompanying flyers detailed where one could join the local christian fellowship.

regular church-goers would no doubt be impressed with this masterful performance of biblical proportions but i suspect it could be a life-defining event for some yet to believe in the virgin birth, or more crucially, the resurrection of the saviour. who knows, bruce kuhn the actor may yet save some souls !!

all hail, bruce almighty!

PS. i wonder if billy graham started out this way....???