Recovering Religion
By HOLLY WALL, 5/23/2007
Justin McKean's "Born Again Yesterday" is a humorous and poignant look at fundamentalism in America, chronicling one man's struggle with his religion.
Next up is Justin McKean's one-man show chronicling a recovery from being raised fundamentalist, called "Born Again Yesterday."
"Hello, my name is John, and I'm a fundamentalist. It has been one week since I've judged someone fit for eternal damnation," is how the show opens, and it continues for nearly two hours as John explores all 12 steps of his recovery, "being born again from having been born again."
Fundamentalism refers to the Protestant movement stressing that the Bible should be taken literally, not only in matters of faith and moral, but also in historical context. And, depending on what church you were raised in, it can also refer to glaring intolerance, an always-right attitude and a tendency to judge everyone around you.
McKean said he grew up in a strict fundamentalist church and home in Broken Arrow and begin to question his religion in middle school. He didn't write the play, though, until three years ago in an acting class in Maryland. His assignment was to perform 12 to 15 minutes of improv material solo.
His instructor, Gary Austin (founder of The Groundlings in L.A., among other things) told him it was a lot easier if he had a topic in mind, and McKean, having worked on a series of humorous essays about his fundamentalist upbringing, decided to use material from those.
The sketch ended with "These people are crazy," and when the 15 minutes were up, his peers were rolling with laughter. His instructor told McKean he reminded him of George Carlin, and a few classmates said they would pay to see a show like that. One man, though, in his late '40s, had tears in his eyes as he pointed to McKean and told him, "You have to tell this story. I grew up this way and I know a lot of people who grew up this way. It's funny, but it's more than just funny."
He worked with Austin on a script and began performing it in the living rooms of close friends and some small venues. The audience included a broad range of people, from everyday church goers to atheists.
"The atheists walked away saying, 'I didn't know it was like that,'" McKean said. "The church people walked away laughing and saying, 'I understand why people think we're crazy.'"
And though the play is funny and likes to make fun of itself, it also explores some of the more serious issues surrounding religion, like politics, acceptance and social issues. Fifty to 60 percent of the play is based on fact, McKean said, on things that either happened to him, that he saw or that he heard about happening to someone else. The other half is speculation and metaphor.
McKean plays about 15 characters, and the show, which is continually evolving, will include mention of a few current events, namely the recent passing of "The Great Divider" Jerry Falwell.
You can see "Born Again Yesterday" at the Nightingale Theater, 1416 E. 4th St., This Friday and Saturday, May 25 and 26, at 8pm. Tickets are $7, Saturday night's performance will be followed by Nightingale's resident production "Old Crow Confessions" at 10pm. So settle yourself in and enjoy a night of confession.