The Passion Trust is a charity that supports the resurgence of Christian Passion Plays in the United Kingdom. [1]
Its aim is to keep alive the heritage of dramatic re-enactments of the Easter story. [2] Passion Plays take place in over 50 different locations in the UK, each adapted to the local community and the volunteers who perform and produce the plays. [3] As reported in Christianity Today, the purpose of Passion Plays is to bring the Gospel message to life within communities. [4]
The Passion Trust was established in 2011. It acts as a centre for resourcing, financing and equipping community performances to support the dramatic, story-telling heritage of religious drama for future generations. [5] It also advocates for public drama through local and national media. [6]
Trustees and supporters of the Passion Trust have been involved in Passion Plays all over the world, including Australia, South Africa, Italy and Brazil, where Jesus was crucified on prison bars. [7] Passion Plays have also been performed by prisoners in jails including at Louisiana State Penitentiary (2012) [8] where seventy-five inmates at Angola Prison and Louisiana Correctional Institution for Women (LCIW) came together to put on a performance of the Passion. [9] The performance was the subject of a documentary that shows scenes from the daily lives of the inmates together with scenes from the play that is performed in the prison grounds. [10] Other Passion Plays in prisons include those performed in HM Prison Greenock in Glasgow. [11]
The Passion Trust hosts an annual conference attended by actors, arts practitioners, producers, directors, fundraisers and journalists. [12] It also shares information for people starting new Passion Plays or wanting to develop existing plays, including script-writing, fund-raising, working with local councils and engaging with local communities. [13]
Keynote speakers at Passion Trust conferences include:
The Passion Trust connects UK Passion Plays with Europassion, a large European organisation that promotes Passion Plays in Europe. [25] Established in 1982, this umbrella organisation draws together Passion Play communities from several European countries, some of which have been performing their plays for hundreds of years. Over 80 Passion groups from 16 countries are represented. [26]
According to Mons. Fausto Panfili, the Chaplain of the Europassion:
The experience of the Europassion constantly lets us experience a so far unexplored pathway, so that we can continue to grow. Surmounting a self-referred vision of our own experience obligates us to confront a regional, national, European and universal horizon. That is why a new vision, not fragmentary, is necessary. Unity doesn’t mean uniformity. A spiritual energy, stronger and more attentive to cultural elaboration, a more evident solidarity in order to be recognised as bearers of hope, to help the people and communities grow. [27]
The Passion Trust is a charity that supports the resurgence of Christian Passion Plays in the United Kingdom. [1]
Its aim is to keep alive the heritage of dramatic re-enactments of the Easter story. [2] Passion Plays take place in over 50 different locations in the UK, each adapted to the local community and the volunteers who perform and produce the plays. [3] As reported in Christianity Today, the purpose of Passion Plays is to bring the Gospel message to life within communities. [4]
The Passion Trust was established in 2011. It acts as a centre for resourcing, financing and equipping community performances to support the dramatic, story-telling heritage of religious drama for future generations. [5] It also advocates for public drama through local and national media. [6]
Trustees and supporters of the Passion Trust have been involved in Passion Plays all over the world, including Australia, South Africa, Italy and Brazil, where Jesus was crucified on prison bars. [7] Passion Plays have also been performed by prisoners in jails including at Louisiana State Penitentiary (2012) [8] where seventy-five inmates at Angola Prison and Louisiana Correctional Institution for Women (LCIW) came together to put on a performance of the Passion. [9] The performance was the subject of a documentary that shows scenes from the daily lives of the inmates together with scenes from the play that is performed in the prison grounds. [10] Other Passion Plays in prisons include those performed in HM Prison Greenock in Glasgow. [11]
The Passion Trust hosts an annual conference attended by actors, arts practitioners, producers, directors, fundraisers and journalists. [12] It also shares information for people starting new Passion Plays or wanting to develop existing plays, including script-writing, fund-raising, working with local councils and engaging with local communities. [13]
Keynote speakers at Passion Trust conferences include:
The Passion Trust connects UK Passion Plays with Europassion, a large European organisation that promotes Passion Plays in Europe. [25] Established in 1982, this umbrella organisation draws together Passion Play communities from several European countries, some of which have been performing their plays for hundreds of years. Over 80 Passion groups from 16 countries are represented. [26]
According to Mons. Fausto Panfili, the Chaplain of the Europassion:
The experience of the Europassion constantly lets us experience a so far unexplored pathway, so that we can continue to grow. Surmounting a self-referred vision of our own experience obligates us to confront a regional, national, European and universal horizon. That is why a new vision, not fragmentary, is necessary. Unity doesn’t mean uniformity. A spiritual energy, stronger and more attentive to cultural elaboration, a more evident solidarity in order to be recognised as bearers of hope, to help the people and communities grow. [27]