#8 - The Thorn

We have been back in Colorado for 10 years, and for 10 years I've been saying, "We should go see 'The Thorn' this year."  So, sadly, once again I find myself pondering why human nature is to simply put off things we want to do.  This year when I saw the advertisments start to show up, I committed to attending it as one of my 40 new adventures.

I'm sure many of you non-Colorado Springs residents are asking, "What's 'The Thorn'?"  Essentially, it is an Easter drama. It seems a bit unfair to call it just "an Easter play," since it truly is more of a Broadway-style production.  It is quite "Cirque du Soleil-ish" at times and includes fire dancers, dancers twirling down from the ceiling on streamers and gymnasts tumbling across the stage. There are hundreds and hundreds of people involved in the cast and crew, not to mention the staff required for seating, ticketing, etc.   Since 1997 it has been an annual tradition of New Life Church, the largest church in the Springs.
 
What made this year's show doubly special for us was that we knew one of the ballerinas. She portrayed Eve (as in Adam and Eve). Yes, I know Eve isn't generally part of the Easter story, but this drama prettty much spans the whole Bible: the fall of Lucifer, Adam and Eve and original sin, the Jews' enslavement in and liberation from Egypt, and pretty much the entire New Testament.   

It was definitely a powerful drama. The flogging and crucifiction scenes were very graphic (remember, this show started long before Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ") and emotional.  Overall, I think it was a wonderful drama. My only complaint would be that for someone not already familiar with huge amounts of the Bible, many parts could have been confusing. By trying to condense so much into a short time span, a lot of explanation was left out. If one didn't know that Jesus starting flipping tables in the temple because the corrupt sellers had turned the house of God into a den of thieves, they would have been stumped during the play as to why Jesus' jubilent entry into Jerusalen suddenly turned into rage (there was very little dialogue, more music and narration). 

But, then again, my kids always tell me that I ruin movies all the time because I'm too picky.  Having said that, I'd give 'The Thorn' two thumbs up. The fact that it is pulled off using all volunteers makes this amazing performance ten times more amazing.

If you live in Colorado Springs and haven't ever seen 'The Thorn,' go out and see it this year.