2nd April Stirring up the passion in Nottingham


A Saturday night in downtown Nottingham is one that on many occasions will be filled with passion. And that was my aim as I jumped aboard the tram and headed into the city or as the local would mysteriously say, 'up town'; to have a passionate encounter. 

Not I hasten to add after drinking a skin full of gassy lager and gorging on a spicy kebab but rather in the hallowed confines of St Mary's Chuch in the Lace Market area of the city as the converted and the curious gathered to watch the Nottingham Passion, an interpetation of the last week of Jesus' life.

The two performances on Friday and Saturday night were both sold out which made me wonder why its 'run' hadn't been extended. And the £5 tickets (not the reported 30 pieces of silver) were a bargain. It cost me almost as much to travel in on the tram.

The staging and lighting attempted to make the most of the impressive space but if I am honest, I thought it lacked passion. Perhaps I know the story too well, perhaps I found the placing of various quotes out of context a bit jarring, perhaps it was a bit one paced and ponderous, perhaps it was the tame and sanitised way that the crucifixion was interpreted but like the beer at the end of the night in the city centre pubs, it was just a bit flat.

Yes there were a couple of moments in the performance which made me think, 'Oh I hadn't thought that it happened like that' but they were few and far between. Maybe, just maybe, if the performance had included the Rise Park Six it might have ad a bit more fizz. Only the upcoming award season will tell.

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