The Last Confession – Review by Ben Bustillo ©

Prohibited its reproduction

Is Roger Crane, the writer, alerting us to compare what is going on in the church of Catholicism today with what went back in 1978 with he election of Albino Luciani as Pope?

Or is he comparing the reforms of Luciani who became Pope John Paul the 1st with the ones Pope Francis is trying to bring today to the church of Christ as they call themselves? Or was he foreseeing the future when he wrote this play sometime back in 2007. No matter how you try to respond to any of these questions or to others you might be able to identify, the authenticity of the performance presenting the primordial question of the assassination of this Pope, leaves you at the end of the play with the doubt even if you choose to contradict the writer.

The truth is that the characters adaptation reflecting the internal struggle that faith brings to insiders of the church, is well manifested in the play. The humor mixed with truths to maintain awake a large mature audience who averaged well over the 70 years of age, were well introduced with the so powerful piece of history that has remained a mystery for all these years.

The intricacies caused by the election of a Pope from the country bathed with faith interconnected with personages as Bishop Paul Marcinkus, the American living in Rome for such a long time who managed the Vatican Bank, the financial losses and the hanging of Roberto Calvi because of the losses of Banco Ambrosiano and as one of the responsible for discovering the laces between the Italian mafia and the church have a major effect in the audience perhaps a bit ambivalent in their interpretations of the play with their own emotions concerning their faith.

Crane converted the vile maladies of the plot into something that any audience who professed a catholic faith easily digest mentally and reconcile with each own belief. For a common mind to think that their church is able to conspire not only to name a Pope, but also to bring the church as much more valuable than faith or the same God, is difficult to process in a different scenario as to the one as the author was able to bring together to please spectators of all flavors.

Other factors included in the drama which are still center of the church controversies are, one, the liberalism that some members have tried for years to implement without results; two, the negation to perform an autopsy on the Pope to prove if he was poisoned or not; and third, the guilty conscience left by the inoperancy of those in power who chose not to do anything in the name of the church, rather than in the name of God.

The maneuvering of the Cardinals in the election of a Pope were a crucial moment in the developing of the plot when Cardinal Giovanni Benelli manages to elect an Italian Cardinal who proved to be in his 33 days of reign more liberal than he was expected to be; the introduction of the nun who was instrumental as well as his personal assistance providing major clues to the creation of the rumors or uncovering of his assassination, the coffee and candies remarks; his return to his desk to pick more sweets before he went to his bedroom and encounter his destine with death, all of these scenes caused remarkable reactions among the audience.

The play was, not only well acted, but also brilliantly written to present a powerful message to the viewers. The last scene when Cardinal Benelli sets on fire his last confession was so powerful and capable to influence any educated mind to force either, personal knowledge archived in their brains, or the desire to look for more information to reinforce a belief conformed by religious or anti religious thoughts.

A play of this caliber, couldn’t have found a better writer or a better group of actors.

Bravo!