BACK SUPPER 5'1m*f RT: The last supper, transubstantiation (RT == Readers' Theater: requires little or no memorization, little or no rehearsal. An indefinite number of reporters are salted throughout the audience.) JOHN -- (enters wearing tunic, headdress and sandals, crosses) REPORTER -- Excuse me sir. Can you answer some questions? JOHN -- (stops, turns to audience) Who are you people? What are you doing out here? REPORTER -- We're newspaper reporters. We were hoping to have a press conference with Jesus of Nazareth. JOHN -- I'm sorry. Jesus is unavailable right now. And he gave strict instructions not to be disturbed. REPORTER -- Well, I'm sure that if you told him that the press corps was here.... JOHN -- I don't mean to be rude, but how did you people find us here? I mean noone comes out here at night! REPORTER -- A man name Judas Iscariot told us that we might find Jesus and his disciples on the Mount of Olives. Jesus IS here somewhere, isn't he? JOHN -- I told you, he gave strict orders not to be disturbed. REPORTER -- What could be more important than communicating with the press corps? JOHN -- I can think of about a dozen things. But the one thing he's doing right now is praying. REPORTER -- Well, we wouldn't want to interrupt his prayers. Perhaps YOU can answer a few questions. JOHN -- About what? REPORTER -- First of all, may we have your name? JOHN -- My name is John son of Zebedee. REPORTER -- So, you're one of Jesus' apostles, just like Judas Iscariot. JOHN -- Yes. REPORTER -- Judas Iscariot told us that Jesus ate what he called his last supper tonight. Is that true? JOHN -- That's true. REPORTER -- Last supper before what? JOHN -- It's his last supper on earth. Jesus expects to die tomorrow. REPORTER -- Holy Smoke! REPORTER -- What will he die from? REPORTER -- Natural causes or otherwise? REPORTER -- Is someone going to kill him? JOHN -- I'm not sure HOW Jesus will die or specifically who will kill him. But Jesus himself said that he will be betrayed into the hands of the Jewish leaders and he will be killed by one or more of the gentiles. REPORTER -- Holy Smoke! REPORTER -- Can you tell us WHY Jesus will be killed? REPORTER -- Is this because of his blasphemous statements? JOHN -- First of all, the statements Jesus made could only be considered blasphemous if Jesus claimed to be God but he was not God. REPORTER -- So, you believe Jesus when he calls himself God. JOHN -- I think it's only obvious. Look at the miracles: everything from healings to walking on water to raising the dead. How much more proof do you need? REPORTER -- But SOMEBODY doesn't believe him. JOHN -- And those somebodies will kill him tomorrow. REPORTER -- Holy Smoke! REPORTER -- Your friend Judas Iscariot told us that the last supper of Jesus was a magic meal. JOHN -- A magic meal? REPORTER -- Yes, he said that the bread and wine in the meal transformed into the body and blood of Jesus himself. JOHN -- First of all, Judas is no longer a friend of mine. He will betray Jesus into the hands of the Jews. Second, that sounds like the kind of nonsense Judas would say. REPORTER -- Nonsense? Are you saying that the last supper has absolutely no magic in it? JOHN -- Judas is forgetting what the last supper was. It was the PASSOVER meal which is a SYMBOLIC meal. It's been a SYMBOLIC meal for over a thousand years. REPORTER -- But Judas said that Jesus referred to the bread as his body and the wine as his blood. JOHN -- When Jesus said those things, he was merely changing the symbols. In the Passover meal the bread and wine SYMBOLIZED the body and blood of the lamb that was slain in Egypt to save the first born of Israel from death. During tonight's Passover celebration, Jesus says that the bread and wine are now symbols of Jesus himself. REPORTER -- Symbols. JOHN -- Yes. REPORTER -- Of Jesus himself. JOHN -- He's not the first one to make the claim. John the Baptist called Jesus "the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world". REPORTER -- But Jesus said "This is my body" REPORTER -- That's right. And he also said, "This is my blood" REPORTER -- How do you know that at that moment Jesus wasn't changing the bread and wine into body and blood? JOHN -- Because right after he said those things, he said "Do this IN REMEMBERANCE OF ME". REPORTER -- You're sure about this? JOHN -- I was lying right next to him when he said it. We all got it, that is we all got it, except Judas. And I'm not sure Judas really got ANYTHING about Jesus right. REPORTER -- You know this might be a matter of interpretation. Maybe Jesus used the bread and wine as symbols AND he changed them into something else too. JOHN -- No! No! You've got it all wrong! I've been at Jesus side for three years. A couple of years ago, Jesus told his disciples to eat his flesh and drink his blood. But there was no bread and wine in site. It was symbolic talk. He was telling them and he's telling us now to feed spiritually from him. REPORTER -- How can you be sure he wasn't being literal? JOHN -- We're Jews. Eating real blood is forbidden by God in the law of Moses. And eating human flesh is cannibalism. Do you think God condones cannibalism? Please excuse me now. I promised Jesus that I would pray. (exits) ©2007 Bob Snook. Conditions for use: Do not sell any part of this script, even if you rewrite it. Pay no royalties, even if you make money from performances. You may reproduce and distribute this script freely, but all copies must contain this copyright statement. http://www.fea.net/bobsnook email: bobsnook@fea.net BACK |