I Am Herod by Kemick, Richard Kelly;

Long description:

Shortlisted, Wilfrid Eggleston Award for Nonfiction

On a whim, armchair-atheist Richard Kelly Kemick joins the 100-plus cast of The Canadian Badlands Passion Play, North America&&&39;s largest production of its kind and one of the main tourist attractions in Alberta. By the time closing night is over, Kemick has a story to tell. From the controversial choice of casting to the bizarre life in rehearsal, this glorious behind-the-scenes look at one of Canada&&&39;s strangest theatrical spectacles also confronts the role of religion in contemporary life and the void left by its absence for non-believers.

In the tradition of tragic luminaries such as David Foster Wallace, Jonathan Goldstein, and David Sedaris, I Am Herod gives its congregation of readers unparalleled access to the players of the Passion: there&&&39;s Judas, who wears a leather jacket even when it&&&39;s 30˚C; the Chief Sadducee, who is ostracized for his fanaticism; Pilate, the only actor who swears; the Holy Spirit, who is breaking ground as the role&&&39;s first female actor; and the understudy Christ, the previous year&&&39;s real-deal Christ who was demoted to backup and now performs illicit one-man shows backstage.

"Kemick's book is that delicious cross between Waiting for Guffman and The Studhorse Man, a rousing personal comedy that dances between the sweat of art and the glue of experience. Nothing like it exists in non-fiction, but don't read it for that reason. Read it because it sticks to your fingers and you can't shake it off."

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