The Passion of The Black Hills Passion Play

Click Photo to Book Your
Spearfish, South Dakota Hotels Online

Now that you have seen the emotional and temporal Passion Of The Christ produced by Mel Gibson, take a trip to the high plains for an even more emotional, positive, and enlightening live theatrical production about the last seven days of Christ — The Black Hills Passion Play.

June 1, 2004 marked the opening performance of the 65th anniversary season of the Black Hills Passion Play in Spearfish, South Dakota.



	The dramatic Last Supper with the Christus Portrayer, Josef Meier in the foreground, right.

The play, which came to the U.S. from Germany, was first presented in the "Queen City" of the Black Hill's magnificent amphitheatre in 1939, and has been in performance ever since the founder, Josef Meier, became one of the tourism pioneers of the state, and who received much national and international recognition for his work in the outdoor drama.

The Passion Play also toured for over thirty years, playing indoors in theaters and civic auditoriums throughout the U.S. and Canada. It once had a winter home in Lake Wells, Florida, in the middle of an orange grove.

Well known as one of the oldest Passion Plays in the U.S., the production has been seen by over 10 million people. With performances three nights a week during June, July, and August, the Passion Play features a cast of professional actors who speak the oratory parts, along with nearly 100 extras from Spearfish churches, who all dramatize Christ's last days.

I grew up in Spearfish, and during the summer months I was a Passion Play extra, and what a thrill it was, even though we participated for donuts and drinks. I learned how to wrap a turban, picked the most colorful costumes, and fought over the best sandals with the other kids.

Once I was a camel tender, another time a Roman standard bearer, and then a Roman guard, and always in the mob scene up to Golgotha, the most stirring scene in the play — The Crucifixion. One night real lightning shot through the skies around the cross Josef Meier was hanging from, and the actors showed passionate fear running down the hill, many tripping, and it was as if transported back two millennium. The play came alive that evening.



	Portrayal of Christ taken down from the Cross after the Crucifixion.

In conjunction with the 65th Anniversary milestone, the Passion Play company is planning a number of special events, including museum and backstage tours of the USA's largest outdoor stage. A special visit to the animal pens is a great photo opportunity for the kids.

While 65 years is a long run for a drama like this, the production's root actually runs much deeper. Originally it was a German play first staged in Luenen, Germany, presented by the Monks of the Cappenberg Monastery. As early as 1242 they staged a reenactment of the Resurrection of Easter Sunday. The simple tableau was the foundation of most Passion Plays, evolving as other scenes from the Bible were added. Only a few of those Plays have survived the test of time and are presented to this day — the most notable is Oberammergau in Germany, which is held only once every ten years.

In 1932. the troupe's leader and portrayer of Christ, the late Josef Meier, and his wife, Claire Mume Meier, who played Mary, met with South Dakotans who proposed a Black Hills amphitheatre, following a Sioux Falls engagement in 1937.

Meier considered a number of sites for an outdoor stage and it was the prime importance that a locality be found that would, because of its climatic and natural background, ensure the success of the play. There was a natural amphitheater in Spearfish, without the need of extensive changes. And the weather was stable in the summer months.


		The modern 6,000-seat Black Hills Passion Play amphitheater is the largest stage in the USA.

Outdoor performances began in Spearfish in 1939. Even today performances are every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday at 8 p.m. during the summer months (Bring a jacket, the evenings are cool.). In its impressive size and arrangement, the stage is in keeping with the architecture of 2000 years ago. Some of the buildings are 40-50 feet high, but they do not dominate the setting.

In 1954, the citizens of Spearfish and Josef Meier were presented with the Freedoms Foundation Award for their achievement in community development. Soon the Passion Play of Spearfish became a pilgrammage site. Camels, horses, donkeys, sheep, and doves lend to the feeling of authenticity. You feel as if present at the events that took place two thousand years ago.



	Jesus is betrayed by Judas and is condemned to the Cross.

The theater evolved from rustic pine plank seating to one of the world's most comfortable venues with 6,000 stadium-style seats. Spearfish changed from a tiny isolated village to a community of 10,000 on the nation's longest transcontinental highway, Interstate 90.



	Barrabas is freed, and Jesus & the thieves are led to Golgotha.

But for all the progress in the past 65 years, the Passion Play would be recognizable to audiences who witnessed it in Germany long ago or in more than 600 U.S. and Canadian cities in recent decades. Twenty two scenes include Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, betrayal by Judas, trials before Pontius Pilate and King Herod, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection.

Josef Meier's daughter, Johanna, a well known worldwide opera phenom, along with her husband Guido Della Vecchia, produce the Passion Play today.


While the Play's upcoming anniversary in Spearfish, overall longevity, and massive audience numbers intrigue people, Johanna Meier noted: "We can't allow ourselves to let those things overshadow the important story we are telling." After many years of no road touring, the Play went back on the road in the summer of 1998, on a limited basis, visiting the Ukraine, Florida, and Manitoba and Ontario, Canada, and as part of the Millennium Celebration Pilgrimage 2000. With its newly constructed touring set, the Passion Play has the flexibility to be produced either indoors or outdoors, in amphitheaters or conventional auditorium.

		Johanna Meier portrays Mary, Mother of Jesus.

The message is timeless and timely as we face the complexities of the new Millennium.

Synopsis of the Black Hills Passion Play:

Prologue.
A street in Jerusalem. Triumphal entry of Jesus into the city.
High Priests and Scribes hold Council with Caiphas.
Jesus takes leave of his mother in Bethany.
Jesus warns Judas that the tempter does not overtake him.
Judas is persuaded to betray his Master.
The Last Supper.
Judas and the Priests in the Sanhedrin.
At the Gate of Bethphage.
Jesus Prays in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Jesus is captured and led into the Sanhedrin.
Befor Pilate. The Priests demand that Jesus be sentenced.
In the Court of King Herod.
Jesus is brought before Pilate the second time.
The despair of Judas.
Jesus is lashed by the Roman soldiers.
Jesus is brought again before Pilate and condemned to death.
On The road to Golgotha.
The Crucifixion.
Jesus is taken from the Cross and carried into the Tomb.
Resurrection. The Angel speaks to Mary Magdalene and the Women.
The Ascension.



	The message of Jesus Christ has been presented to over 10 million people.

Rates and reservations for groups and individuals, as well as information about a full day package of Spearfish activities, may be obtained by phoning 605/642-2646, or 800/457-0160, or email bhpp@blackhills.com or visit www.blackhills.com/bhpp

The Black Hills were the scene of one of the last great gold rushes in the world. The Black Hills area is renowned for the Mount Rushmore Memorial sculpted by Gutzon Borglum, Visit the Badlands National Park and fossil beds east of the Black Hills, and on I-90. Visit Deadwood for a modern feel to a former Old West gambling town. Be sure to visit scenic Spearfish Canyon during the daylight hours.

— By Kriss Hammond, Editor, Jetsetters Magazine. Photos courtesy of The Black Hills Passion Play.