First Wirral Mystery Play to be staged in Birkenhead Park

Apr 8 2009 by Lorna Hughes, Birkenhead News

THE first Wirral Mystery Play is set to be staged in September in Birkenhead Park.

Leaders of all Christian denominations in Wirral are backing the idea, which would rival Chester’s annual cycle of mystery plays.

Leading the project is writer and musician John Gorman, formerly of The Scaffold, who has an office in the park’s Grand Entrance.

The Wirral Mystery Play Theatre Company will organise the event, in conjunction with The Wirral Academy, Active Drama, Masque Theatre, Hand-in-hand Productions and the Spider Project.

Mr Gorman said: “I was walking through the park and it just struck me that it’s a very theatrical park and it would be great to do a mystery play here.

“We’re still coming up with the script but we have 24 scenes, from the Creation to the Crucifixion.”

Mystery plays were among the earliest formally developed plays to be put on in Medieval Europe. They focused on representing bible stories in tableaux form, usually with sung responses to what was being shown.