Drama Drama

The topic of the play "Corpus Christi" has been beaten to death around Tarleton State University's campus. There are a lot of arguments surrounding it: Freedom of Speech, Homosexuality, Religion, and an intriguing combination of all three. I'm sure anyone in the surrounding area of Stephenville has heard about the play, has taken a stance, and pissed a circle around the issues. I won't go into much detail of the play itself other than to say that the Director, John Otte, his cast and crew, and the faculty involved did an absolutely amazing job and I'm honored that I was able to see a their dress rehearsal.  

The issues that concern me the most with the cancelation of not just the Corpus Christi play but the all 4 as well as the Jazz Festival, other than the obvious threats of violence, are the fact that Freedom of Speech was slapped in the face, and the intolerance shown so harshly. There seemed to be four groups in all of the mayhem: 

1. The religious zealots who angrily protested the idea of Christ and his Disciples being portrayed as gay and couldn't see beyond that.
2. The homophobic crowd... 'nough said
3. The "Pro-Play" people, whether it be for its brave stance or simply out of friendship or respect for those involved
4. And the people who may not have agreed with all of the context of the play but were still willing to respect the people involved and their Rights, as well as the Rights of all of those who were interested in viewing the play themselves.

To say that there were simply just these 4 groups would be a complete falsehood and each of us are, more than likely, an odd combination of these examples as well as a dash of completely personal ideals. 

Each of our lives has defined us in completely unique ways. The only person I can speak for is myself. Like I mentioned before, I was able to see the dress rehearsal for the play and I’m truly grateful that I was able to do so. I do not agree that Christ nor his Disciples were gay but instead of getting stuck on that, I was able to see the play for what John was hoping. It’s a piece about love… pure love. It was a very intriguing way to display it but I can’t think of a more powerful statement. To watch people that I see all the time reveal such personal glimpses of themselves was extremely humbling and to say it was moving would be an understatement. Yes they were acting, but watching the play, I couldn’t help but think about how several of them wouldn’t be able to escape the reality that was created on the stage… the line between fantasy and reality was painfully blurred. 

The hardest part of the play for me to witness wasn't the religious aspect of it, rather than hearing and seeing all the hurtful words and actions done against fellow human beings when they were portraying characters other than those of the Disciples. I'm insanely thankful for the life experiences I've gone through in order to make me into a more tolerant and accepting person. It kills me that, I'm apparently, judging from the actions of the citizens in and around Tarleton and Stephenville, capable of such hatefulness. How can a person live like that with such hate burning in them? I can't even be angry with most of them at this point... I just feel sorry that they're counting out so many people they would have the opportunity to get to know and love. 

But to sum up everything, I think Voltaire said it the best: "I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it."

If we don't have the freedom to discover and share who we are... then what is the point of this craziness we call life?