I first saw Tony Lawton's performance of The Great Divorce
more than ten years ago, and I still get goose bumps when I think about it. Call it brilliantly-conceived, skillfully written,
superbly executed, and you will have scratched the surface of it. Call it thrilling, wonder-filled, gut-wrenching, breath-taking,
and you will be closer to the essence of it. It rattled my soul. It broke my heart. And I came away from that theatre feeling
like I had experienced the full impact of C. S. Lewis' creative power for the very first time.
-- Diana
Pavlac Glyer, author, The Company They Keep: C.S. Lewis
and J.R.R. Tolkien as Writers in Community
"Recently I took a group of sailors from my base to a performance of The Screwtape Letters. My attempt is to expose these young men to some aspects of "Culture" that does not involve gangster
rap or things that blow up on the screen. I must say that your interpretation of the Lewis book was by far one of the finest pieces of acting
I have ever seen. In the military I have been all over the world and have seen Broadway, the London stage, as well as they
Sydney Theater scene. Your performance and adaptation of the work was on par or better with any thing I have
seen. Anything which keeps the attention and interest of young
men for longer than 15 seconds on the subjects of faith, evil, and eternity deserve special mention. They did
want Toadpipe to be in leather more often, but such are the minds of 18-21 year olds. You in leather is a different story,
but was in keeping with the intent of what Lewis wanted to communicate.
"In a way it is a shame that your play is such a
small venue. I am sure if you toured the road to a larger audience, they would respond as I and my sailors did at the Lantern.
It was a pleasure to experience your work and I wish you much success in the future."
-- Peter Gregory, Commander, Chaplain Corps,
U.S. Navy
"I went to see Screwtape almost on a dare, skeptical that Mr. Lewis' letters could be amenable
to the stage. From your first "My dear Wormwood" -- the way you inflected it, the way it rang true psychologically -- I knew
I was in for an extraordinary experience. I went back a second time. . . .
"Moreover, the dance number
between letters not only also served this 'digestive' function (and the slide show was a clever stroke!) but even enhanced
understanding of the letters by painting in choreographed images what you were painting in words -- the seething hatred between
people, the despair and frustration of unfulfilled lust. The Bible describes the last stop on the train of despair as a 'gnashing
of teeth.' Your Screwtape communicated this.
"Thank you for striving for perfection."
-- Andree Sieu
"As part of a retreat on story last summer, I invited
Tony Lawton to come put on 'The Great Divorce.' Tony's electrifying performance held the audience spellbound for the entire
show. A wide range of people came to life on stage through Tony's richly developed characterizations. The overall evening
might be described as intensity combined with humor and poignancy. Months after the show, I've continued
to hear rave reviews from the attendees."
-- Doug Floyd, Spring of Light Ministries, Knoxville, TN
"I was in the audience last Friday night at Trinity
Chapel in Knoxville. To say I was awestruck by your performance may begin to describe my appreciation. In my 60 years of plays and live performances (I think I saw Jimi Hendrix; it was the 60's!), I have never
been as touched by a performance as I was yours."
-- Linda Seals, Knoxville, TN
It was
one of the most memorable outreach evenings ever at Proclamation Presbyterian Church, when Anthony Lawton brought to us his dramatization
of the Great Divorce. Folks were excited to have a truly professional presentation of one of C.S. Lewis' great works, done by an artist well known to the theatre loving community of Philadelphia
and the nation. The sanctuary has hardly been more packed. Folks came from all around and many visitors discovered our church
for the first time. Obviously It was not to be an evening for traditional preaching of the Gospel, but it was a profoundly creative setting
to consider serious questions of human nature and eternity that drive us to the answers found in Christ - and it was great fun. Many who would not normally come to Sunday worship, were
here for this. For me it was the best close up experience in theatre that one
can have and was totally gripping. The diversity of roles that Tony captured in the drama made it fascinating and most impressive.
It was truly one man theatre it its best! In the softenss of the moments that followed, Anthony came out and participated
in a free discussion time that was personally sincere and genuine, during which we were able to provide some evaluation and
feed back as a Christian community looking to Christ our Savior.
It
has led to many subsequent conversations of great spiritual value. I would have it again every year if we could.
Leonard Stewart
Assistant Pastor
Proclamation Presbyterian Church
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
MORE TO COME SOON!
