Cathedral Players Stage Eliot’s ‘Murder in the Cathedral’

Under the direction of Dr. Marianne DiQuattro, the Cathedral Players staged their third play at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Orlando, T.S. Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral, on May 9-10.

“The Cathedral has produced six shows in the last five years,” DiQuattro said. “The Cathedral Players began their thespian mission in 2021 with The Tragical Historie of Doctor Faustus, which was performed in the Cathedral courtyard (and featured smoke and lighting effects). We followed up that inaugural production with reader’s theatre productions of Dorothy L. Sayers’ He That Should Come and The Cup of Trembling by Elizabeth Berryhill (a portrayal of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s life and martyrdom). We also produced two full productions in the Cathedral, using the backdrop of the beautiful building as the set for The Zeal of thy House by Dorothy L. Sayers and Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot. Sayers and Eliot both wrote the plays for the Canterbury Festival in the 1930s.”

Murder in the Cathedral begins with Archbishop Thomas Becket returning to Canterbury Cathedral. He has been away from his congregation for seven years due to religious and political conflicts he developed with King Henry II. Becket decides that martyrdom – sacrificing his life in devotion to God – is his fate, and he refuses to be tempted by other, more earthly pursuits of political power or worldly desires.

Cathedral Dean Reggie Kidd appeared in the play and found it to be a life-changing experience. “We all found ourselves having to answer the same question Thomas Becket faced back in 1170: Despite all other competing claims, does Jesus alone command my heart, my body and my soul?” he said.

DiQuattro believes there is a tie-in with theater and the Cathedral’s overall mission. “The Cathedral Players view their mission as an extension of the Cathedral’s mission to experience the love of God in Jesus Christ,” she said. “We use our activities to meditate on God’s Word, to come together in prayer to seek God’s blessing on our efforts and to enjoy works written by great Christian authors or about themes that speak to how God’s grace becomes manifest in everyday life. We do our best to embody God’s love both in how we treat each other in rehearsal and by presenting these stories so that audiences can experience them. We also pair the productions with preparatory Sunday school sessions or Wednesday evening discussions and follow-up productions with talkbacks.”

The troupe chose the play because of its style of writing. “In ‘Murder in the Cathedral,’ we were delighted to find that in a play full of exceptionally complex poetic imagery, T.S. Eliot had captured the rhythms of Cathedral life and the diversity of people who seek spiritual guidance from Cathedral priests and the bishop who keeps his seat there,” DiQuattro said. “The play features such moving depictions of Archbishop Thomas Becket caring for his flock – priests and laypeople alike – even as he knows he walks toward his certain death. We were all moved by Bill Anderson’s delivery of Becket’s lines,

“Church drama, no matter how humble, whether it takes place in a great and historic cathedral or in a common church hall, is an invitation to bring these stories to life for all to enjoy,” she added. “I know personally that witnessing my fellow church members assume these roles and find the deep spiritual and personal meaning contained within the lines has blessed me immeasurably.”