This weekend, Broadway actor Bruce Kuhn will be retelling the story of possibly the most influential man in history - Jesus the Nazarene. "The Accounts of Luke" is taken directly from the Bible and retells the story of Jesus' life from the viewpoints of eyewitnesses from almost 2,000 years ago.
A collection of eyewitness accounts, "The Accounts of Luke" is taken word for word from the Gospel According to Luke in the Bible. Don't be fooled, though, because although the Bible is sometimes thought of as dull, Kuhn reassures people that "Accounts" has a fair bit of humor in it. "It's remarkable material, regardless of your religious knowledge. People don't realize how much humor is in it, in the way Jesus dealt with people," Kuhn said.
The very idea that religious matters often have the tendency to become boring is the greatest challenge Kuhn has had to overcome for "Accounts." The main objective of the show, though, isn't to have the audience rolling in the aisles. In an age of neatly tied up, half an hour sitcoms full of violence, sex and immoral behavior, there seems to exist a lack of decent programming. By performing in "Accounts," Kuhn hopes to make a change. "I hope putting truthful, good stuff out there will bring people closer to God," he explained.
Kuhn also finds working in "Accounts" challenging because it is a show containing numerous layers. "It's great for me as an actor to work with material I can explore," he explained. Having performed in shows such as "Chess" and "Les Miserables," this one-man show is quite a change of scene.
In a recent interview with The Michigan Daily, Kuhn reflected on his switch from musicals to a more serious drama. "I was tired of musicals and wanted to do something with meaning and impact," Kuhn said.
Regardless of one's previous experience with the Bible, Kuhn wants people to know he's trying to present this material in a different manner. He stresses that the show isn't a laundry list of do's and don'ts.
"Accounts" premiered in 1983 at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, after directors there had heard about a similar show running on Broadway. The show had a limited one-month run but was revived by Kuhn eight years later. Currently Kuhn is taking "Accounts" to universities and churches across the nation. As for how long he'll continue to perform "Accounts," Kuhn said, "I'll quit before the show suffers." When that time comes, Kuhn will then move onto another similar show, "The Acts of the Apostles."
Prior to the Friday night performance, Kuhn will be presenting a free preview that will also include time for questions. The preview will be held at 2:30 pm, in Room 126 of East Quad.
"Jesus changed Western history if nothing else, and I'm just trying to tell it the way it might have been originally told," he said. So no matter whatever beliefs one has regarding religion, "The Accounts of Luke" should be an extremely interesting and informative performance unlike any drama before shown in Ann Arbor.