VIDEO: Go Inside Rehearsals for THE GOOD BOOK at Berkeley Rep

Berkeley Repertory Theatre presents The Good Book. After bringing the successful production of An Iliad to theatres around the country including Berkeley Rep, Tony Award-winner Denis O'Hare and Obie Award-winner and Associate Director Lisa Peterson are teaming up once again to unearth the all-too-human formation of the most influential book in Western history - the Bible. In addition to collaborating with O'Hare on the script, Petersen will also direct The Good Book.

This powerful play weaves together three distinct yet connected stories: a devout young man struggling to reconcile his belief with his identity; an atheist biblical scholar trying to find meaning as she faces her own mortality; and the creative journey of the Bible itself - from ancient Mesopotamia to medieval Ireland to suburban America - through the many hands, minds, hearts, and circumstances that molded this incredibly potent testament to the human spirit.

"Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare's plays investigate the power of storytelling and the role that narratives play the world," says Artistic Director Tony Taccone. "Has there been a more influential set of narratives in the history of Western civilization than those contained in the Bible? The Good Book examines how the Bible was created, and how we still need stories to sustain us, whether we believe in God or not. I look forward to having this duo back at Berkeley Rep as they show how narratives from the Bible continue to impact our society."

The Bible and faith have been frequent themes within both O'Hare and Peterson's lives. "Denis is a reformed believer, obsessed with the Bible. And I'm agnostic, nostalgic for a faith that I never actually had," says Peterson. "So we decided to write about faith, and the lack of faith, and that most powerful, dangerous, glorious work of collective creation ever known to humankind: The Christian Bible. We want to understand how and why it exists, since it permeates every corner of American culture, and we all just don't talk about that enough. What is this book?"

Previews for The Good Book begin Thursday, April 25, 2019 and the show runs through Sunday, June 9, 2019. Press day will be Thursday, May 2, 2019. Ticket prices for the run start at $30, and can be purchased online at berkeleyrep.org or by phone at 510 647-2949 (Tue-Sun, noon-7pm).

To post a comment, you must register and login.