By Luisa De la Concha Montes

This is a new play co-created by Scott Le Crass & Joe Wiltshire Smith exploring religion and creativity through effective humour. The play opens with Spanish painter, Elías García Martínez (Roger Parkins), entering the stage dancing to Rosalía, setting the mood for his camp, tender and charismatic character. Promptly after, a vibrant dialogue ensues.

Through a swift and well-structured narrative, audience members are transported back to 1930s Borja, Spain, a small town with fewer than six thousand inhabitants. Here, we meet painter Elías García Martínez, who, inspired by extreme devotion, has spent two hours creating a painting of Jesus Christ. Unimpressed by this accomplishment, the two nuns in Borja’s local church decide not to pay him for his time, despite him explaining the need to feed his family.

Eighty years later, in a sort of karmic twist that threatens the integrity of the same church, janitor Cecilia Giménez (Mary Tillett) decides to restore the painting, accidentally turning it into an internet sensation that feels, in the eyes of the local priest (also played by Parkins), as heresy. The narrative jumps back and forth between the main storyline. Short interruptions led by narrator and commentator Louise Beresford provide more historical context whilst inviting the viewers to ask bigger questions about the value of art, and the dynamics of power at play.

There are three paintings in the room – one after it was first finished by Elías, a second before the restoration attempt, and a third one after Cecilia’s restoration. Each scene builds tension by pre-empting the big reveal of the final painting, creating a fun and engaging narrative that cleverly intertwines the story with the stage design. Despite being set in Spain, the humour is very British. Irony underpins each scene, with Jesus even making an appearance through an otherworldly voice that speaks to Cecilia and convinces her to go ahead with the restoration.

On paper, it is a simple play narrating a well-known pop culture story, and explaining the context that led to the creation of the famous meme. However, underpinning this, there is a deeper desire to humanise the subjects involved and ask important questions that may be overlooked within the internet banter: Who gets to make art? Who defines artistic value? And more importantly, does anyone actually know what Jesus looked like?

What makes this piece of work so fun to watch is the creative structure, the charisma with which it is expertly delivered by the cast, and the vibrant dialogue in the script. In this new play, ideas about religion and creativity converge making viewers question what they thought they knew about art and enlightenment.

Behold! The Monkey Jesus runs through 8 July.

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