What’s your first thought when you hear the word “play”? You’re probably picturing a red curtain opening slowly as the lights go dim. The orchestra and pit release a sound that bounces off the walls in the room. Then the stage lights brighten and the spotlight hits the beginning speaker of the show or, in this case, begins one of Asbury’s upcoming programs, Viking Summer, written and directed by Dr. Jim Shores.
“We were first asked to write a play for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2019 by the Beating Heart group,” he said. “They are an ecumenical nonprofit organization helping people in Scotland understand that there are other options than abortion to deal with an unexpected pregnancy.”
With the numbers of unwanted pregnancies rising around the world, especially in Scotland, Shores felt that this was the right message to portray this year through the play. He said these students have been working hard alongside him and are ready to share this play with the world.
“The play is a form of arts-based ministry to the 350,000 people who come to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (historically the Fringe Festival is the third most attended event in the world behind the Olympics and the World Cup series),” he said. “It is our hope that the play opens the door for conversation where people can consider alternatives to having an abortion.”
Shores added they are conscious of women who potentially might see the show and have had an abortion. “We have a character in the play with the same storyline who doesn’t know how to forgive herself and is pointed to Jesus’ forgiving work on the cross for hope and restoration and healing,” he said. “The play also looks at the economic and social realities that play into people feeling they have no choice but to get an abortion.”
The group will perform at Asbury in the Greathouse theater on April 7-9 at 7:30 PM before traveling to Scotland for six nights at the Fringe Festival August 8-13, 2022.
