A Passion Play of Modern Pain

Like most struggling artists in Los Angeles, Angela wants it all. She’s an aspiring dancer and a single mom, hoping to make it big.

Her live-in boyfriend, Jonah, has his own problems. He’s a waiter, living an angry life, tortured by the memory of his younger brother who was killed in a drunk-driving accident.

But after Angela is diagnosed with a brain tumor, both she and Jonah are confronted with the damning question that most people have asked at some time in their lives.

“Where is God in my pain?”

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This is not your typical Passion play. This is “Pulse,” a modern drama with videos, music and dancing that creates a parallel between the last days of someone’s life in Los Angeles and the biblical account of the final days of Jesus Christ.

The production, which plays tonight at the Los Angeles Theatre Center, emerged from the pastor and members of Mosaic, a Christian church in East Los Angeles. Because of its emphasis on integrating creativity and spirituality, Mosaic has attracted dozens of screenwriters, actors, directors and producers to its hip urban house of worship.

For Christians worldwide, the rituals and solemn prayers of Holy Week string together a remembrance of the Gospels and a reminder of the spiritual significance of the arrest, condemnation and crucifixion of Christ in their own lives. During this time, religious observances and dramatic presentations of the Passion abound in churches, allowing the faithful to not only think about these things, but also to see and imagine them more vividly.

Many Roman Catholics, in particular, remember the events leading to Jesus’ death by reenacting the 14 stations of the cross in the streets of their neighborhoods. The stations trace the route Jesus took after his condemnation by Pontius Pilate, the stops he made, and the people he encountered before his crucifixion.

At the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, those attending “The Glory of Easter” are treated to a powerful presentation of the events leading to Christ’s last days. The production includes live animals, special effects, flying angels, a crucifixion scene and a triumphant resurrection finale. After 17 years, the popular production has evolved into a Holy Week tradition for much of the Crystal Cathedral congregation.

“As a child, you hear the story over and over,” said Gail Moore, who saw “The Glory of Easter” last week. “With this play, you can visualize it and believe it. It brings the words to life. It’s like when you hear the clanging of the nails when they are driven into the hands of Christ, oh, you can feel it.”

“Pulse” takes a different approach. By using a compelling story line in which the lead character is a woman with cancer, the show avoids some of the preachy overtones that turn many young people away from traditional church Passion plays. Angela’s character has parallels to Christ in that she is forced to accept death as her fate.

Jonah commits a Judas-like act of betrayal when he has an affair with Angela’s best friend. Interwoven through the drama is an MTV-style multimedia presentation that connects what is happening in Angela’s life to the last days of Christ. With the high-energy dance numbers and music, “Pulse” sometimes seems more like the Broadway hit “Rent” than a Passion play.

“We wanted to do something during Easter that wasn’t a Bible story,” said Mosaic Pastor Erwin McManus. “With the traditional Passion plays about Jesus, we felt like we were doing Easter for those who already knew it. This is for those who don’t believe.

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“It’s not written for Christians. It’s targeted to the person who isn’t very religious or the person who wonders how a man who lived 2000 years ago could be relevant today.”

McManus is the executive producer of “Pulse” and plays the role of the Messenger. He said he felt strongly about staging a drama that would contemporize the Passion of Christ so the message would resonate more clearly with what young people are dealing with today.

“We’re depicting the life of people in Los Angeles. It creates parallels from pain and suffering in everyday life to the final days of Christ,” he said. “It deals with agony and loneliness and that sense of wondering why God allows such bad things to happen.”

Jimmy Duke, 23, director of “Pulse,” likens watching an annual traditional Easter play to “visiting grandma’s every year.” He said he wanted the “Pulse” audience to identify strongly with the characters on stage.

“People go to those Passion plays to revisit an old story, a great story, a powerful story. But for us, we’re giving them a present-day story in real time. Passion plays help people focus on what was. This play helps them focus on what is and what could be.”

Belinda Puente, 27, who plays the part of Angela, said some people who have seen “Pulse” have been prompted to start dialogues about the direction of their own lives. “It seems to make people wonder what they would do if faced with these situations. During this time of year, I think senses are more heightened. It’s a great time to put something together that people can relate to,” she said.

The idea for the play came from playwrights David Arcos, 31, and his wife, Carrie, 26, members of Mosaic. Carrie Arcos said that in trying to develop the drama, she reread the Gospels and highlighted key words and emotions that the play’s characters could use.

In the end, David Arcos said, despite the somewhat tragic story line, the message he wants people to take with them after they see “Pulse” is one of hope.

“The play shows how two people find the pulse of God through tragedy,” he said. “We just want people to know God is there. He’s closer than you might think, even in times of suffering.

“There is a scene where Angela asks, ‘Have you ever felt like God is right there in the room?’ That’s exactly what we want people to feel,” Arcos said.

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Times staff writer Evelyn Lau contributed to this story.