| The following letter to the editor is a reader response to a story by reporter Bill San Antonio. You can find the original article here. |
I happened to pick up a copy of the March 21, 2014 Roslyn Times while I was eating my lunch and read the article by Bill San Antonio regarding the Royal Crown Players production of “Jesus Christ Superstar”. I feel it bears commentary. First of all, the only things “Christian” about this play are the names of the characters and their association with the Bible. The story line as well as the relationship between the people in it, is as far removed from orthodox Christianity as one can get and for anyone to think that this “rock opera” reveals the mindset of a Christian “culture” is simply unbelievable.
The article goes to some lengths to describe the difficulty the Roslyn High School’s theater department is having selling tickets to this performance. The senior who plays Mary Magdalene in the production went on record stating that people are asking why Roslyn H.S. would “put on a predominantly Christian story for a mostly Jewish community in Roslyn- particularly during the Lenten season…” . Another student in the play said he noticed “some reticence from Roslyn’s Jewish community to support (the play) because of its differences in religious beliefs and cultures.” I have had to ruminate on these statements because they are so bizarre and narrow minded one would think you are talking about supporting the practices of some remote tribesmen in another continent rather than the faith story of the majority of Americans. Do you mean to tell me that Jewish students in Roslyn are so untutored that they are ignorant of the fact that the historical Jesus was himself a Jew? In a district where academic excellence is so touted, is there no one who knows that the roots of Christianity are inextricably linked to Judaism? I raised three children in this school district that has always had a reputation for Liberal thought and practices. Think of the most controversial leftist agenda you can, and I assure you that most of the Roslyn families are in favor of it. So it is with some confusion that I wonder what is so egregious in this hippie era musical to make the sales of tickets so slow. It seems, at least to the kids interviewed, that it may simply be the mention of the name, Jesus Christ, that has the potential audience swimming in their hesitation. After all, according to the young man who plays the high priest Caiaphas there is a cultural difference between the Jewish kids that go to Roslyn High School and those who are not.
Sitting here at my desk, I am trying to think exactly what that cultural difference would be. As non-Jews , I recall my children performed in the same “culture” as their Jewish counterparts did at school. They read the same books, watched the same television shows, and laughed at the same jokes. They learned the history of the same country, sang the same patriotic songs, and studied the same geographical landscapes as one another. So I am not sure what this young man means when he refers to this void of cultural differences and its interference with attracting the usual theater goers in the district. It borders on a kind of paranoiac self-examination that makes clear just how culturally challenged this school district can be. Instead of getting their knickers in a twist about the possibility of a show with vague Christian antecedents, the patrons of the arts at Roslyn High School should reflect on their own shortcomings as people willing to have dialogue with others. After all, we would all know the injustice of it if the proverbial shoe were on the other foot.
Yours Truly,
Susan Gill
Massapequa Park
