Luther - A Play

Not only have I read Luther, but I have performed in the play. I played the Role of John Tetzel, the Dominican monk who sells indulgences. I found the play rather boring. Tetzel's scene in Act 2 scene 1 is one of the few entertaining bits of the play though a 4 page monolouge is a lot to memorize.

Osborne, the popular enfant terrible of British drama in the 1950's and 60's (then ignored once his politics became unfashionable in artistic circles) won several awards for this play, an interesting but hardly comprehensive portrait of Martin Luther's career. The title role (originally played by Albret Finney)is challenging for an actor, and intriguing for the reader. The second act--in which Luther fights the Catholic Church--is strong and well-written; the first is also dramatic in its attempt to explain why Luther did what he did; the third, however, by viewing Luther at the end of his life, disappoints because we are only TOLD about his accomplishments rather than sharing them.The scope of the play is too large--it tries to cover too much time rather than concentrating on one (or a few) specific events. But it is a curious and fascinating play; few are written about religion any more, and for that alone it is engrossing.