In St. Joseph Monastery in Switzerland there is a Franciscan Cloister where six sisters lead a life of prayer and faith. But what does that mean? How do people have such closely held beliefs in things they can’t prove? Why has the way we believe and what we believe in changed so much that this abbey’s numbers have dwindled to just six?
In this thought provoking work, acclaimed Swiss documentary theatre maker, Corinne Maier tries to answer these questions and more as she examines faith, religion, and the connection between faith and enlightenment.
Diving into the personal and profound, this multimedia performance uses interviews with the actual nuns living in St. Joseph’s Monastery as Maier and her performers explore their own beliefs and what a call to a higher power could mean in this day and age.
Like A Prayer begins with Maier’s own personal story of reconnecting with an old friend who has developed some new beliefs. As she struggles with her friend’s new found faith in Jesus, Maier must battle with her own preconceptions and judgements about what religion and belief are in order to truly understand and accept her friend’s choices. Mixing true, personal stories, with fictional accounts, with the actual words of the Franciscan nuns and the very real questions about religion we all face, this is a performance that unpacks the call so many people feel to serve a higher power.
Corinne Maier has been working in documentary theatre since 2010, starting her own company, PLAN C PERFORMANCES, in 2015, and is currently working on several new projects in Germany and Switzerland. With Like A Prayer Maier made her return to Basel, Switzerland after touring her production “Past Is Present” (2013) through several European countries and India, and is excited to make her Edinburgh Festival Fringe debut with this profound and challenging play.
Founded in 2017 and based in Basel, Switzerland, produktionsDOCK supports artists to make contemporary and insightful dance and theatre working with young people, up and coming performers and established artists in the Basel area.
PLAN C PERFORMANCES / Corinne Maier thanks the Fachausschuss Tanz & Theater Basel-Stadt & Basel-Landschaft (Arts Committee for Basel/Switzerland), Migros kulturprozent and Pro Helvetia – Swiss Arts Council.
Promoted by PRAIRIE – The coproduction model of Migros culture with innovative Swiss theatre groups
Venue: C venues
Time: 20:00 – 21:30
Dates: 20 – 28 August
Buy tickets here
