The Gospel According to Matthew

Description
**** [FOUR STARS] This autobiographical, multicharacter one-man show about the relationship between homosexuality and charismatic Christianity could easily have been 90 very tedious minutes of preaching to the converted. After all, when the program tells us that one of the characters is notorious antigay hatemonger Fred Phelps, it’s not hard to predict where things are going and how we’re supposed to feel. But likable writer-performer Matthew Francis is more interested in exploring his topics' gray areas than in dismissing or condemning his subjects, and his portrayals of various clergymen, psychiatrists, ex-gays and other controversial figures are thoughtful and mostly sympathetic. (The text is taken directly from interviews that Francis conducted over the course of eight years.) A few of the monologues go on a little longer than they need to, and an audience-participation segment seems poorly planned, but these minor distractions hardly diminish the power of this provocative, funny and moving work.—Ethan LaCroix, Managing Editor