Walled City Passion: The Easter story reimagined for Londonderry in 2022 with Teenage Kicks soundtrack

The Walled City Passion is a retelling of the last hours of Jesus before his crucifixion.

The multi-platform drama explores how a violent incident at a peace festival in the city threatens to destabilize both is and the wider world.

The Passion opened on Thursday afternoon and is being performed twice daily over the Easter holidays.

It is the brainchild of former school friends who grew up in the city, Church of Ireland Archdeacon Robert Miller and playwright Jonathan Burgess.

Rev Miller said the project began as a conversation between them during lockdown about how they could tell the Easter story to a new audience.

Inspired by a similar project in Manchester, they have adapted local music such as the famous ‘Teenage Kicks’ into the story, sung by 700 schoochildren.

“Jonathan and I were at school together and had already done quite a bit of work together around the peace building,” he told the News Letter.

He says the cross in the 2022 retelling comes in the shape of a dagger used by the Judas figure of ‘Jude’, a zealot-type paramilitary who is hoping for the violent overthrow of the occupiers.

The Christ figure he betrays is “Christopher” who is preaching a movement of peace and love.

Jude plots with the religious establishment - the Caiphus Organisation - with whom he is diametrically opposed ideologically. His aim is to try and force Christopher into a direct confrontation with the establishment and prompt a revolution.

Jonathan Burgess told the News Letter: “Yes, that is pretty much correct. We have the Caiaphas Organisation as the people from the indigenous community who are looking to keep power within that community. Jude is representative of the people in that community who are pitching for armed resistance.”

He says that “Governor Hart” is the Pontius Pilate figure and “our occupying force” while Christopher wants “a peaceful regime change”.

The performances are running from until 16 April and will be screened on the BBC iPlayer and RTE.

See: www.walledcitypassion.com