THE TESTAMENT OF MARY

About the show

AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE For two thousand years Mary has been silent. A woman seen but not heard. Until now. This Mary is no saint, not meek, nor obedient. In a voice that is both tender and furious, she speaks a defiant truth. Years after his death, men are compelling Jesus’ mother to agree their official record, their version of the truth. They call him the Messiah, a miracle worker, the man who conquered death. They are relentless, but she is steadfast. He was her only son. His blood was spilled. She will write her own Gospel on her own terms. Recounting memories of Jesus’ last days, Mary brings her powerful maternal perspective to a very complex and human story of sacrifice. At the core of this performance beats the heart of a woman grieving an unbearable loss. The question is, was it worth it? Penned by one of the world’s greatest living novelists, this is a profound, poetic and immensely thoughtful reimagining of one of Western cultures’ foundational narratives. Irish writer Colm Tóibín has been shortlisted for the prestigious Booker Prize on three occasions. Most recently, in 2013, for The Testament of Mary, now adapted for the stage. In the role is the Helpmann Award-winning Alison Whyte (Love and Information, Travelling North), an actor renowned for her visceral connection to language, her intelligence and her deep reserves of empathy. Shaping the space around her are STC Resident Director Imara Savage (Hay Fever), Resident Designer Elizabeth Gadsby (The Hanging) and composer Max Lyandvert (The Golden Age). In their hands, a new kind of gospel will be told