There are a group of people in Pallasgreen, Co Limerick, who have been growing beards since last May, getting fitted for leather costumes and learning Hebrew. This is all in the quest to perform a world first – a 24-hour live re-enactment of the Passion, which starts tonight (Holy Thursday) at 8.30pm.

But why?

“It’s a fantastic story,” says director, producer and farmer Eamonn Harty, a three-time All-Ireland-winning acting champion.

“Any story that lasts 2,000 years is a good story.”

Given that Nicker Hill is such a perfect location, something like this was inevitable. The hill overlooks a beautiful, light olive-painted church and in its shadow sits a replica of the Lourdes grotto – it’s made from rock and comes complete with a statue of Mary talking to children. Steps from the churchyard crawl up the hill, lined by bronze-statue stations of the cross that were brought in from Paris in the 1950s. The steps and stations end at the crucifix at the top of the hill where tonight (Holy Thursday), there will be a 100-voice choir, while the rocks are lit up with fire.

Community

While an ideal location helped motivate the Passion project, it’s very much driven by its passionate participants.

The aforementioned grotto will be Gary Fraher’s (who’s playing Jesus) prison during an all-night vigil. It will be guarded by “soldiers” who’ve been working on the conversations and interactions they’re going to have while guarding the grotto. They’ve even learned Latin to ensure it’s as authentic as possible, such is the effort required for a production that’s completely unscripted – and is the same reason why High Priest Caiaphas has been learning Hebrew.

“It’s the chance to be involved in something really different,” says Martin Cosgrave, who plays a soldier and an “evil” character.

“We want to do it for ourselves, as well as for the parish,” says Daniel Pio Grace. This is a change of attitude for Daniel who got involved when “Jesus was putting tyres on my car and he asked me to come down and be a thief. I ended up as a soldier”.

The Passion starts in the Garden of Gethsemane – Fr Pat Burns PP’s garden. Simultaneously, Mary, Veronica, Mary Magdalene and Elizabeth will be 500m up the road in the church (the audience can gather around either scene). A short while later, the ladies will come down the road to meet Jesus after his arrest. A trial in the church follows (it’s turned into Caiaphas’ court) and Jesus is then taken to prison. The following morning at 10am, he’ll be brought out to Pontius Pilate. The flogging scene will be re-enacted and he will make his way up Calvary with the cross. The crucifixion takes place at 3pm on Good Friday, complete with three people on three crosses.

Why are the people of Pallasgreen so keen to tell the “greatest story ever told” in such a manner?

“We’re mad feckers,” admits Eamonn. “You have to be a little bit mad.”

Emotional pull

But on a more serious note, Eamonn says he wants something “real”.

“I hate fakery. I want to move people.”

Something that’s real, he says, is powerful.

“When Jesus says he’s afraid and he looks into your eyes, you’re not seeing a statue anymore – you’re seeing a real human being who’s frightened. We’re going to make you weep.”

Eamonn is after emotion – lots of it – so rehearsals have been intense.

Jennifer Mulcahy, who’s playing the part of Mary, says: “Eamonn is trying to put across that Jesus was a simple man. He must have been scared.”

She says she has gone home from rehearsals many nights “bawling in the car”. She’s adamant you can’t go into rehearsals “cold”.

“If you do, it doesn’t work.”

“It’s from in here,” says Michael Gleeson, pointing at his chest.

The soldiers agree.

“There’s a come down when you’ve finished rehearsals,” says Nick Bailey.

So what’s driving all these people? Religious fanaticism is one theory – but that’s all it is, a theory. Brian O’Neill who plays Caiaphas, clarified it all for Irish Country Living: “We are normal Joes, not holy Joes.”

That may be so, but religion is the very essence of the Passion, something that’s not lost on them. Gary (Jesus) says he now has more of an appreciation for what Jesus went through.

“Reading the liturgy, reading between the lines – he was in tatters.”

Garry concedes that, overall, their re-enactment is a bit extreme, “but we want to do it right. There’s no point in shying away from it. You can’t cheat the audience in any aspect of it because they all know the story.”

And the audience themselves are going to be an integral part of the whole thing.

“It’s a whole coming together of the audience and the actors,” says Michael Gleeson. “We don’t want people standing at the fence. We want them to go in and be part of this, and to see and feel what it is.”

There’s been a long tradition of drama in Pallasgreen.

Ann O’Dwyer (who plays Veronica) set up Pallasgreen’s drama group in 1978, which became Grean Drama Group in the late ’80s. She can take credit for Eamonn Harty’s involvement. He’s been talking about doing the Passion since the ’90s.

They’re expecting 10,000 visitors and Irish Country Living has no doubt that they’ll get that – provided the weather holds out. But the group are optimistic: “If the man above wants us to do it, he’ll give us good weather.”

For more, visit www.passion2014.org