A new framing of the Easter story provides a fresh take on an ancient tale in The Devil’s Passion, produced and directed by Guy Masterson.

Writer and performer Justin Butcher is an old-fashioned storyteller. Muscular and committed, he takes on a whole flurry of characters to tell the story of Jesus’ rise to power and triumph over evil. It’s all brought up to date with a clever framing device: from the first scene, we are plunged into the heart of the ‘War on Terror’ of the early 2000s, where Butcher is uncomfortably convincing as a British politician expounding the dangers of religious extremism (the politician is never named, but is wearing a thin red tie…). Later on, he paints a heartbreakingly vivid picture of a young woman cast aside for a health condition she cannot hope to fix. That is, until a radical, dangerous preacher and religious zealot – code name ‘Jesus’ – heals her.

The script is poetic and beautifully written, although it’s a shame that such complex language and ideas couldn’t be given a little more time and space to breathe. Some of the best moments in the show are when time seems to slow, and we get to linger with one character. When the metaphors come too thick and fast, it’s harder to feel the weight of the words.

This show is very traditional in many ways; but the perspective is unique, to the extent that even the well-known betrayal of Jesus by Judas makes for a gripping finale.

Playing 1:10pm daily at Assembly George Square Studio One, 12 – 27 August 2023.