Bootless Stageworks to Bring Twist on Monty Python NOT THE MESSIAH to Downs Cultural Center, 1/31-2/1

As the Monty Python crew dust off their scripts for their upcoming reunion show in London, a local theater company is preparing to bring a Python classic to the stage with a twist. For two nights only, Not the Messiah - a one of a kind musical comedy experience - comes to the Delaware stage courtesy of Wilmington's own Bootless Stageworks.

"Part of our mission is bringing unique works to local theater audiences, and Not the Messiah is definitely no exception," says Executive and Artistic Director, Rosanne DellAversano.

The show is a fresh take on Monty Python's Life of Brian. Brian - a reluctant revolutionary of the People's Front of Judea - falls in love with Judith, gets mistaken for a Messiah, and is arrested by the Romans and sentenced to be crucified. The plot is rife with the classic Python humor that has entertained audiences for decades.

"My favorite Python memories are watching Python with my high school friends and just laughing our heads off," says Cynthia Ballentine who portrays Mandy, Brian's Mother, "Then we would quote Python to each other at school the following day. The wit is timeless."

While the show has a typically witty Monty Python plot, there's one big difference. Not the Messiah is an oratorio and features an orchestra, chorus, four soloists, and a narrator. Described by co-creator Eric Idle as "baroque 'n' roll", its eclectic music plays on a variety of styles and influences including pop, country and western, doo-wop, Broadway, Mozart, and Welsh hymns.

"So rarely in the opera business do we get to do something so fun like this," says Cynthia, "I am really looking forward to having a blast with my colleagues and really entertaining our audience."

The show features such glorious songs as "What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us," "We Love Sheep," and, of course, "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life." While Python fans will certainly enjoy this new spin on an old classic, even audiences new to Python humor are sure to delight in this raucous night of musical frivolity.

Bootless Stageworks provides and cultivates theater experiences among people wanting to be entertained intellectually, aesthetically and emotionally through challenging stage presentations. A collaborative company of emerging artists and dedicated volunteers, Bootless Stageworks creates artistically original, high-quality theatrical performances for the enrichment of target audiences.

For more about the show, click here.

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