WHERE AND WHEN:
May 1-18, 2025
Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. (at E. 10th Street)
Presented by Theater for the New City
Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 PM, Sundays at 3:00 PM
$20 gen. adm., $15 seniors & students
Box office: www.theaterforthenewcity.net, (212) 254-1109
Running time: 1:15 plus intermission
Critics are invited on or after May 3, opens May 3.
Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/DLH9fW23N4CWRFpD8

NEW YORK, April 2 -- Matthew, Mark, Luke and John wrote four differing gospels and created Christianity. These four evangelists actually never met, but they do--as members of a comedic literary synod --in "Four Evangelists Walk into a Fog" by Douglas Lackey. The results are hilarious and profound. Theater for the New City (TNC), which has been Lackey's theatrical home since 2003, will present the work's premiere run May 1 to 18, directed by Mark Harborth.

Playwright Douglas Lackey has two lives, as a playwright and a philosophy professional. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Yale and is a Professor of Philosophy at Baruch College, CUNY, where he has taught since 1972. As a playwright, he specializes in serious portraits of historical/intellectual figures in moral dilemmas, including Ludwig Wittgenstein, Giulio Caesare Vanini (a free-thinking physician-philosopher of 17th century Italy), Bertrand Russell, Martin Heidegger, Hannah Arendt, and General Heywood Hansell (who advocated for a strategy of daylight precision bombing over saturation bombing in WWII). All of Lackey’s previous plays at TNC have been praised for their deft mixtures of philosophy, romance and politics. He has also written several other historical plays that he calls “comedies of ideas.” This is one of them.

It was inevitable, perhaps, that Mr. Lackey would take up the subject of contradictions among the Gospels, which is quite popular in theological, academic, and secular circles. It has been widely discussed for centuries and remains an active topic in biblical studies, apologetics, and skeptical critiques of Christianity. The four Gospels differ on key details, which include Jesus’ genealogy, his final words on the cross and the timing of the resurrection appearances. Mark and John omit the virgin birth. Paul’s letters, written earlier than these four accounts, rarely mention Jesus’ earthly life and contradict Gospel accounts on the resurrection’s witnesses and Jesus' teachings on the Law.

These various disagreements provide food for fun and amicable debate in the play, with the contradictions providing natural comedic tension. It could be mistaken for a debate between philosophy professors in the faculty lounge of an American college. The foursome are aware that their writings will become the foundation of a major world religion, so their tone is collegial and good-natured. If there is any intellectual critique, it is based on logic. Comedic anachronisms heighten the satire as the evangelists struggle with the weight of shaping a new faith, bickering over details while Mary Magdalene, their "reality check," cuts through their abstractions with raw lived experience. It's done with rapid-fire dialogue, shifting alliances and moments of deep introspection. Think "No Exit" meets "The West Wing" with a theological twist.

Lackey even manages to inject some backstage humor, as in this argument:

John: The psalms say the Messiah’s bones shall not be broken. No broken legs. Let’s move on to the Resurrection.
Matthew: We have problems with the resurrection. Lots of skepticism. Many Jews say the body was stolen from the tomb. Some even say that the followers of Jesus hired an actor to go around Judea pretending to be Jesus. The actor put holes in his hands to make it real.
Mark: Who would believe that? No actor will put holes through his hands just to get paid.
Luke: Apparently you don’t know many actors. 

Douglas Lackey has a 22 year relationship with Theater for the New City, which has presented all his plays to-date. His first play, "Kaddish in East Jerusalem" (2003), dealt with issues of the Second Intifada. His "Daylight Precision" (2014) was a historical drama examining "just war" theories through an unsung hero of World War II, Gen. Haywood Hansell. Lackey's "Arendt-Heidegger: A Love Story" (2018) dramatized the unlikely romance between Martin Heidegger and Hannah Arendt. His "Ludwig and Bertie" (2019) charted the forty-year love/hate relationship between Bertrand Russell and his most famous student, Ludwig Wittgenstein. His "The Wayward Daughter of Judah the Prince" (2021) was a sort of a philosopher's "Thelma and Louise" in which the daughter of Judah the Prince (compiler of The Mishnah--the core section of The Talmud) runs off with her Christian slave girl lover to measure herself against the conflicting philosophies of the period. His "Spies for the Pope" (2023) charted the tragic career of Giulio Caesare Vanini (1585-1619), an Italian philosopher recruited by the Vatican (in Lackey’s telling) for an impossible mission: averting the Thirty Years War by reconciling the Catholic and Protestant antagonisms in key European countries. All these plays have been critically praised as explosive dramas of ideas, romance and politics.

Lackey writes, "I am grateful to Crystal Field and Theater for the New City for encouraging me to present this story. TNC is willing to take on my 'comedies of ideas' and these are quite different from the contemporary obsession with plays of jumbled identities and failed relationships. Kudos to a theater that will buck the mainstream."

Director Mark Harborth was Producing Artistic Director of Gallery Players in Brooklyn, where he has staged "Ragtime," "Dreamgirls," "Gypsy," "Evita," "Rent," "It Shoulda Been You," "A Few Good Men," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "Chess" and "Run For Your Wife," among others. His regional credits include "Hello Dolly," "Jesus Christ Superstar," "High Spirits," "Chicago," "Children of a Lesser God," "Sweeney Todd" and "Pirates of Penzance." He is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

The actors are: Zephyr Caulfield (Matthew), John Gionis (Mark), Nick Freedson (Luke), Matthew Foley (John), Andy English (Paul) and Barbara McCulloh (Mary Magdalene). Set design is by Jerry Mittelhauser. Lighting design is by Scott Cally. Costume design is by Joey Haws. Stage manager is Cassidy Byron.

REVIEWS OF PREVIOUS PLAYS BY DOUGLAS LACKEY

SPIES FOR THE POPE, 2023
"The script is extremely well researched and delights with copious details of political machinations, but an equally important and extremely well articulated thread involves arguments over religious theory. " Victor Cordell, Berkshire Fine Arts

"In a number of ways, it reminded me of Jean Anouilh’s “Becket or The Honor of God” —both richly textured tableaux of history, philosophy, religion, wit and sex.. .what we have is a rarity in contemporary theater: a clever, well-conceived and beautifully produced slice of history" -- Eric Uhlfelder, NY Theatre Wire

THE WAYWARD DAUGHTER OF JUDAH THE PRINCE, 2021
"This was a clever intellectual and philosophical play that was disguised as an action adventure quest…The acting and production values were superb…You will learn a lot and be entertained at the same time. What more can you ask for?" -- Eva Heinemann, Hi Drama

LUDWIG AND BERTIE, 2019
"Lackey is a master at bringing philosophy out of the dusty corners of academia and putting them on a very passion filled center stage. As with his previous works produced at Theater for a New City, 'Daylight Precision' (2014) and 'Arendt;Heidegger: a love story' (2018), 'Ludwig and Bertie' is a victory for smart theater." -- Rachel de Aragon, Berkshire Fine Arts

"The play is a remarkable achievement on two levels: on one level, it provides an exhaustive explication of their respective philosophies (which even those most familiar with the concepts underlying analytic philosophy should find informative and educational).  And on another level, it also provides an entertaining theatrical experience for those less committed to the nuances of philosophical thought in its explorations of these men's personae." -- Alan Miller, A Seat On The Aisle

"This is a fascinating play with a solid cast. It will leave you pondering the philosophical theories for days." -- Brenda Repland, Eyes on World Cultures.

"Both [Russell and Wittgenstein] are considered major 20th century philosophers; their relationship, from their first meeting in Cambridge in 1911 until Wittgenstein's death in 1951, underwent the human and intellectual turbulence usually encountered between father and son....The juxtaposition of these contradictory personalities promises explosive drama, perhaps more than can be contained in one session of theater....Alexander Bartenieff's subtle lighting design helps to sharpen the attention while the costume design by Anthony Paul-Cavaretta beautifully adds to the personality of a character as well as the shifts of period style in the play....The actors maintain the sharp personality contrasts and manage the dialogue alternating between rather complicated philosophical theorems (in merciful snippets) and private conundrums with persuasive clarity. -- Beate Hein Bennet, New York Theatre Wire

ARENDT-HEIDEGGER: A LOVE STORY, 2018
"Arendt-Heidegger: A Love Story," though small scenewise, is huge in its character-driven, thought-provoking ideas, many of which, like racism (both genuine and opportunistic), along with the emergence of right-wing autocratic nationalism, like a virus gone wild, appears to be on the rise around the globe. It is a timely play to say the least. -- Edward Rubin, Theatrecriticism.com

This play is mesmerizing in its many now-familiar aspects to our current situation. The casting is perfect, making the story ever so plausible. " --- Brenda Repland, Eyes on World Cultures

"Our highest recommendation! A thoroughly enthralling drama of ideas, romance, and politics – worthy of the great tradition of Shaw and Ibsen. This show will engage your heart and your mind at the deepest levels." -- Ronald Gross, NY Theatre Buying Guide

"Author Douglas Lackey and director Alexander Harrington have managed to extract a thought provoking stimulating performance from two of the most controversial public intellects of the twentieth century: Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), a German-Jewish philosopher and social theorist and Martin Heidegger (1889-1976), one of the most renowned German philosophers to have succumbed to Nazism. The subject of their romantic entanglement, in conjunction with their political trajectories over the course of forty years, from the mid 1920s to 1964, is the dramatic core of this play in a series of 23 concisely scripted scenes." -- Beate Hein Bennett, NY Theatre Wire

DAYLIGHT PRECISION, 2014
"sweeps us back to an all but forgotten World War II and its tangle of moral questions that still won't go away" – Jerry Tallmer, NY Theatre Wire

"Lackey's play and the direction by Alexander Harrington and fine work by the ensemble cast allow [General Haywood] Hansell to soar back in command as we appreciate his efforts and are reminded that bombing women and children serves no rational military purpose." -- Carole Di Tosti, NYC Skyline

"In light of today's stealth and drone bombings in the middle east, the play is a meditation on the value, or lack thereof, of collateral damage in war….One walks away from the experience feeling more intimately involved in the day-to-day anxieties of the war, from which there is now so much distance, and extremely grateful for not having had to been involved."--JK Clarke, Theatre Pizzazz

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Critics are invited on or after May 3. Opens May 3.
Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/DLH9fW23N4CWRFpD8