Cotton patch gospels unordinary retelling of the life, ministry, death and resurrection of jesus christ is set in the rural hills of georgia. Cotton patch gospel is a musical by tom key and russell treyz with music and lyrics written by harry chapin and produced by philip m. Mowerys design became the world in which our characters lived. As this gospel begins, they sing that somethins abrewin in gainesville. Hes a hugely engaging personality with serious acting chops. With tom key, scott ainslie, pete corum, jim lauderdale. Cotton patch gospel will begin performances on saturday, march 21 and. Gospel of matthew encyclopedia of the bible bible gateway. Cotton patch gospel provision theater company thru nov 8, 2009. There is no performance on sunday, april 12, easter sunday. His roles included tevye in fiddler on the roof, willy loman in death of a salesman, ben franklin in 1776, teddy in arsenic and old lace, pseudolus in a funny thing happened on the way to the forum, w.
First produced on stage in new york in 1981, the cotton patch gospel is a retelling of the gospels of matthew and john set in the contemporary south, accompanied by bluegrass music. Hearing parables in the patch 81 jordans rural roots and academic preparation, we will let him guide us to hearing jesus parables in the cotton patch. Based on the book the cotton patch version of matthew and john by clarence jordon, the twohour production retells the gospel of jesus with both humor and poignancy. Jordan argues his point by superimposing new testament characters jesus, mary, john the baptist, herod, and others, on modern day selfrighteous and selfcontented racism. He was also instrumental in the founding of habitat for humanity.
His nephew, hamilton jordan, served as white house chief of staff. The great harry chapin wrote a musical based on jordans cotton patch translation of the gospels of matthew and john. Jordans book the cotton patch version of matthew and john, the. This awardwinning musical drama is a legslappin, toetappin, handclappin hoedown of a story the retells the gospels of matthew and john translated into present day southern vernacular. Jordan wanted to transport jesus and firstcentury christians to where they were living where we live, talking as we talk, working, hurting, praying, bleeding. Hell be deeply missed, the message from the rekindle school obituary stated. The cotton patch gospel recasts the stories of jesus and the letters of paul and peter into the language and culture of the mid20th century united states south. I like the way clarence jordan ends a note on the cotton patch gospelmatthew and john. The narrator, matthew, irs agent turned disciple, recounts the events of jesus life from his birth in an abandoned trailer behind the dixie delights motor lodge and his lynching. The cotton patch gospel is a colloquial translation of most of the new. It brings the far awayplaces of nazareth, jerusalem, and bethlehem closer to home atlanta and valdosta, georgia. Cotton patch gospel study the cotton patch gospels of.
I have been having an intriguing time this winter studying the commercial versions, from an early 1950s release called day of triumph to jesus of montreal as part of my doctor of ministry study of images of. The cotton patch gospels and new testament letters were written by clarence jordan, a new testament ph. The last few sentences he jesus may let us sit at his feet and wash them with our tears. Both a biblical scholar and a prophetic man of action, clarence jordan lived out the new testament in the soil of rural georgia. Harry chapin cotton patch gospel dvd for sale online. Not your average musical theatre fare, cotton patch gospel is a refreshing change and a reminder of why the literature of the new testament has endured. The remaining performance schedule lists performances on thursday, friday and saturday evenings at 7. The cotton patch gospel recasts the stories of jesus and the letters of paul and peter into the language of the mid20th century south. Matthew and john clarence jordans cotton patch gospel book 1 clarence jordan. This greatest story ever retold is based on the book the cotton patch version of matthew and john by clarence jordan in which the gospel is.
The productions country songs move the characters through the. The cotton patch gospel by koinonia farm founder clarence jordan, recasts the stories of jesus and the letters of paul and peter into the language and culture of the mid20th century south. I have used this dvd with kids, youth groups, adult sunday school classes, and study groups which included biblical scholars and ph. Willy recently performed as the disciple matthew in the cotton patch gospel at theatre threes downstairs theatre too, 2015 as well as portraying general robert e. Rick was a wonderful teacher whose classes and students meant the world to him. Drummond in inherit the wind, and his personal favorite, matthew the storyteller in cotton patch gospel, a. A filmed stageplay recounting the story of jesus as set in modern day georgia with music and reverent humor added. What happened to team fortress 2 soldier voice actor. Herod is the mayor of atlanta and, inevitably, christ is. Including the gospel of matthew except for the begat verses and the first eight chapters of the gospel of john clarence jordan association press, 1970. But in november, the communication department urges the. Its called cotton patch gospel and is available on dvd. A visionary during the struggle for the civil rights of all gods children, he founded an interracial community called koinonia. Harry chapin cotton patch gospel dvd, 2009 for sale.
His voice and demeanor were perfect for walking us through the fast paced life and times of jesus. But a story with multiple characters configured for a single. The play is essentially a one man show with a cast of four musicians fleshing out many of the characters. The cotton patch gospel recasts the stories of jesus and the apostolic letters into the language and culture of the mid20th century south. The cotton patch gospel, by koinonia farm founder clarence jordan, recasts the stories of jesus and the letters of the new testament into the language and culture of the midtwentiethcentury south born out of the civil rights struggle, these nowclassic translations of much of the new testament bring the faraway places of scripture closer to home. This, in part, may be due to the fact that it heads the four gospels and is the first book of the nt, forming a bridge between the old and new covenants. All actors take on different roles as the jesus character calls them forward to participate in different parts of the story. Cotton patch gospel matthew clarence jordan hopefaithprayer. This greatest story ever retold is based on the book the cotton patch version of matthew and john by clarence jordan in which the gospel is presented in a setting of rural georgia with country music songs, the final and perhaps best work of harry chapin. It starred tom key and featured the band known as the cotton pickers that was put together for the show. The cotton patch version of hebrews and the general epistles, 1973. Along the way, he plays a multitude of characters from governor pilate. Clarence jordan july 29, 1912 october 29, 1969, a farmer and new testament greek scholar, was the founder of koinonia farm, a small but influential religious community in southwest georgia and the author of the cotton patch paraphrase of the new testament.
The christmas story from the gospels of luke and matthew. Bear in mind that this resource is not a biblical translation, but a creative paraphrase. The parable of the good samaritan, cotton patch version luke 10. Cotton patch gospel, a new musical with songs by the late harry chapin. It ran offbroadway at the lambs theatre for 193 performances beginning in october 21, 1981. Perhaps hell startle us with his parables and powerful sermons, and sting us with his honest rebukes. Cotton patch gospel a musical matthew did in 2007 youtube. This award winning musical drama is a legslappin, toe tappin, hand clappin hoedown of a story that retells the gospels of matthew and john translated into present day southern vernacular. Cotton patch gospel has been highly acclaimed by criticsand public alike. Essentially a one man show with a cast of four musicians fleshing out many of the biblical characters.
Born out of the civil rights struggle, these now classic translations of much of the new testament bring the faraway places of scripture closer to home. This awardwinning musical drama is alegslappin, toetappin, handclappin hoedown of a storythe retells the gospels of matthew and john translatedinto present day southern vernacular. Shortly afterwards a white gospel song leader came down the road, and when he saw what had happened, he too stepped on the gas. Fans know may as the voice of many popular video game characters.
The gospel according to matthew has always occupied a position of highest esteem in the faith and life of the christian church. But the musical is more than just a hillbilly version of the book of matthew. The parable of the good samaritan, cotton patch version. Gainesville, selma, birmingham, atlanta, and washington, d. The limelight theatre presents the musical, cotton patch gospel, on select dates from december 2 to 31, 2016. His favorite role was matthew the storyteller in cotton patch gospel. The music and lyrics were completed by folk singer harry chapin shortly before. Lee and a number of other historical characters in a civil war christmas on the theatre three main stage.
J o r d a n s r u r a l r o o t s clarence jordan is best known for the establishment of koinonia farm in the 1940s and for his cotton patch translations of the new testament. Gant in look homeward, angel, oscar in the odd couple, weller in the gin game, sid in take me along, drummond in inherit the wind, and his. Sherlock holmes stories magpie audio recommended for you. Cotton patch gospel christmas story clarence jordan. Cotton patch gospel continues until july 1 at huron country playhouse, grand bend.
We used an ensemble of 12, plus one actor for the role of jesus, and a bluegrass band of 6. Gainsville, selma, birmingham, atlanta, washington, d. The actors, musicians and audience had a wonderful time with cotton patch gospel. Drawing its inspiration from clarence jordans book the cotton patch version of matthew and john, the evening is as cute as calico and as sweet as sorghum. Willy welch as matthew served as the primary narrator for the night. Cotton patch gospel cotton patch gospel has been highly acclaimed by critics and public alike.
Other credits include harry chapin music and lyrics. Synopsis of cotton patch gospel the cotton patch gospel is the book of matthew performed in a very vibrant manner. Provision artistic director, appeared in the lead role of matthew in 2004 and does so again. Cotton patch would be fun for a church or youth group to see as part of a lenten or summer series of films on the life of christ. If so, or if youre willing to look at two of the gospels through a different lens, please join our lenten virtual community on the cotton patch gospel. Inspired by clarence jordans provocative the cotton patch version of matthew and john and produced and cherished worldwide since its conception in 1981. The popular music songwriter harry chapin collaborated with key and treyz on the adaptation, which they completed in. A musical, cotton patch gospel 1982, written by atlantabased actor tom key and stage director russell treyz, was based on jordans version of the gospels of matthew and john. Born out of the civil rights struggle, these now classic paraphrases of much of the new testament bring the faraway places of scripture closer to home. Based on the book the cotton patch version of matthew and john by clarence jordan, the story retells the life of jesus as if. Matt brown, matt gross, matt huett, matthew hagelberger, and for the ladies of the university, matthew mcconaughey. Cotton patch gospel premiered on october 21, 1981 at lambs theatre in new york city and ran for 193 performances. It brings the far away places of nazareth, jerusalem, and bethlehem closer to home atlanta. Cotton patch gospel story by tom key and russell treyz, music and lyrics by harry chapin theatre too.
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