Posted on Mon, Mar. 31, 2003

PAT CRAIG: THEATER
'Gospel' takes familiar story, sets it in the South
By Pat Craig
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

The Gospels of Matthew and John have launched countless Christmas and Easter pageants and at least one Broadway show, "Godspell."

And now, taking its show business cue from "Godspell," comes "Cotton Patch Gospel." It tells the same story, but with a sharp turn to the south, an infusion of bluegrass music and a sensibility that is more "Hee Haw" than hipster.

With music and lyrics by Harry Chapin ("Taxi," "Cat's in the Cradle"), an energetic production by Contra Costa Christian Theatre and, mostly, the contribution of a band called Them Hillbilly Buzzards, the show is a charming evening of gentle humor and toe-tapping fun.

The story is not the least bit unfamiliar to anyone who has ventured into the first few books of the New Testament. "Cotton Patch" is based on the Gospels of Matthew and John, but set in Georgia, rather than the Holy Land.

Mary (Ann Westemeir) and Joe (David Friburg) are heading to Atlanta for a tax audit when Mary, who is pregnant with God's child, goes into labor. They duck into a Gainsville, Ga., motel in search of lodging and a doctor, but all that's available is an old trailer and a space heater at the end of a long extension cord.

So that's where the holy child is born, and people come from all over to see Him. The curiosity is such that the governor at the time, Pilate (Steve Dexler), decides to solidify his position by having all the male babies in the state killed. (He does it with little finesse and given the current happenings the world, creates a frightening mental picture by tossing a bomb into a church nursery.)

The story follows Jesus (Keith Parker) through his life and his resurrection, which follows a lynching at the hands of the conventional church and powers that be in Atlanta.

It appears that more effort was put into telling the familiar story in a different way than building any sort of dramatic arc or theatrical masterpiece. "Cotton Patch" was intended to be good ol' fun -- when Jesus walks on water, disciple Jud (Richard Howarter) mistakes him for a large duck -- deeply rooted in Georgia ... or the way non-Georgians imagine Georgia.

There isn't a slice of wry in the whole piece, and here, irony is something for northerners. What you get in "Cotton" is the sort of open-faced, good-natured humor you find in church, reruns of the old Andy Griffith Show (in fact, the script plays like one of Griffith's old stand-up routines from the '50s), and places where the trendy dare not go.

It's the kind of show you can enjoy with the family, as long as you're willing to go with the flow of the silly jokes and corny gags.

Or, you can just go for the music. Them Hillbilly Buzzards, an established band that volunteered for the show en masse, is a treat to hear, both during the show and in bits before and during intermission.

The cast, let by Howarter -- who has most of the lines and does a terrific job as a sort of narrator -- is quite effective, and director Kimberley James has given the piece a tremendous energy.

Yes, it is a play by a Christian theater company. But in this case, the emphasis is more on entertainment than evangelism. And it works.