Focus

The last time my fiancée, Rachael, and I met with the pastor who will be marrying us, Brian Milford, the pastor passed along a copy of Mircea Eliade’s “The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion.” He told me that he had been thinking a lot about the book after he saw the staged reading of my play “Holy Schmidt.” I started reading the book today, taking a break from “The Brothers Karamazov,” and I came across a passage that pushed my ideas for the play NddTG further. First off, I think I will be calling the play “All Grace” for now. That sounds like a great title to me on many levels. Anyway, the passage that hit me was this:

“For a believer, the church shares in a different space from the street in which it stands. The door that opens on the interior of the church actually signifies a solution of continuity. The threshold that separates the two spaces also indicates the distance between the two modes of being, the profane and the religious. The threshold is the limit, the boundary, the frontier that distinguishes and opposes two worlds – and at the same time the paradoxical place where these worlds communicate, where passage from the profane to the sacred world becomes possible.” (Eliade 25)

So, I thought about the doorway of the church. What is striking about the entrance of NDdTG? Fernand Leger’s façade mosaic. This striking and beautiful, colorful and vibrant work of art. I started to consider Leger’s place in the play: How does he fit in with my ideas concerning Lipchitz? What is the connection. It astounded me how simple and obvious the answer was: The subject matter. Both the works by Leger and Lipchitz depict the Virgin Mary. Lipchitz is not the nucleus of the play! MARY IS! D’oh! It was right there in front of my face. I can’t believe I missed it in my last post as I discussed the role of Mary in the church! I’ve decided to focus on the creation of the works of art that concern Mary. What is so beautiful about these works of art is that one was created by an outsider (Lipchitz), while the other was created by a man who had been heavily involved with the Church that he rebelled against it. Leger was a communist and not afraid to be vocal about it and often spoke out against the Church. The mere fact that Couturier convinced Leger to create the façade is a miracle. The two discussed the possibility of working together on a “great work” (Rubin 116). This all took place in America as they were in exile by the war.

In my mind, there is a scene where Leger comes face to face with the blank wall of the church. It is documented that Leger proclaimed, “At last, a wall” (Rubin 118). He begins to plan his work around the challenging structure: pillars, roof, windows. He is approached by a woman, carrying roses. They speak together for a time.

I’ve decided this play shouldn’t be completely narrative. I’m not going to tell the story of the creation of the church, and it may not be told linearly. I want episodes. I want a bit of “spiritual” help in the form of Mary. I don’t know whether to call her “Mary” in the script or not. My feeling is that it should be ambiguous whether or not the woman is really there or if she is a collective figment. Who hears her? Who speaks to her? How does she interact with them?

I have another scene in my mind of Father Couturier and Father Devemy (Father Devemy actually started the project to build the Church) speaking together about creating the art for the church. Mary sits with them, in conference with them, deciding the course of action.

I’m slowly starting to think of this play as smaller than I first thought. At first, I thought this should be a grand, epic play with many characters, lights, and huge backdrops. Now, I’m starting to see a smaller scale, but with the characters having time to breathe. Perhaps this is a shorter play. I feel the need to do more research into the personal lives of Leger and Lipchitz before I can actually begin crafting the play. I feel I’m on the verge of beginning this play.