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‘Pillars of Fire’ makes stop in the Valley
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Neighbors | Submitted.Brent Grosvenor (right) and his daughter Victoria performed in the play "Pillars of Fire" as the Apostle Paul and a teenage Roman girl, respectively.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Brent Grosvenor wrote and performed as the Apostle Paul in the play "Pillars of Fire." The play launched in September 2013 in Italy and is scheduled to run into 2015.
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Neighbors | Submitted.Brent Grosvenor performed during his play "Pillars of Fire." The play followed the life of the Apostle Paul.
By TIM CLEVELAND
With five previous successful plays written, Brent Grosvenor added another in 2013 with “Pillars of Fire.” The play has so far been to more than 20 cities and is booked to keep performing into 2015.
The play launched in September 2013 in Rome and Bellaria, Italy. It hit the Mahoning Valley on July 26-27 at Bridge of Hope Church on Glenwood Avenue. After its run in the U.S., it will return to Europe next year.
“This show will truly answer many questions people have about the Christian faith, what it meant in the first century and how it impacted the world,” Grosvenor said.
Grosvenor, from Manchester, Conn., found success with his prior five plays – “From My Rags To His Riches” (292 shows in 37 states), “Sunday in Manhattan” (229 shows throughout the U.S.), “The Richest Man in the Valley,” “The Passion of the King,” and “Lost in Vegas.”
Grosvenor said the play follows the life of the Apostle Paul.
“The Apostle Paul is inarguably one of the most influential persons in human history,” Grosvenor said. “He was the leading apostle for the most influential person in human history for sure, Jesus Christ. Thirteen books of the New Testament are attributed to him. He is probably quoted every single day around the world. After being endorsed by the original disciples of Jesus, he was endorsed by Christ himself and then went on to give shape and form to the core doctrines of the Christian faith. He is quite important and relevant to today, but his personal life story is also a story for the ages, moving, riveting, challenging and inspiring. He is also very misunderstood and I wanted to tell his story in such a way that would help shed light on the ancient world, Jewish culture and the transformed man that he became after his encounter with Christ on that infamous road to Damascus.
“’Pillars of Fire’ became a piece of musical theater art that I created and intended to be completely relevant to all of us living today in the 21st century. I wrote this musical to help us today strip away the baggage and trappings of how we see and understand their world in order for us today to be pillars of fire and world changers today.”
The cast is a small one but is a family affair, with the play primarily performed by Grosvenor [as Paul] and his 16-year-old daughter Victoria, who plays a teenage Roman girl whose father guarded Paul from AD 58-60 during his first trial in Rome. His other daughter Aria does the lighting, and his wife Tami is the sound mixer. The rest of the cast is about 15 extras from each town the play is put on in, and many other characters, including lead roles, are projected onto a 16- by 12-foot wall that is part of the set. There is constant interaction between the live actors and the projected ones. Grosvenor said the show is a cross between a Hollywood movie and a Broadway musical.
The play lasts one hour, 35 minutes with a 15-minute intermission. Grosvenor said he believes anyone who sees the show will be profoundly affected by the performance.
“Every man, woman and child, young and old, rich or poor can be a pillar of faith, love and hope for this world,” he said. “We are all called to be pillars of fire. God’s grace is for everyone and anyone of us can be world changers in the same way Paul was.”