Julia Sweeney says she was a happy Catholic girl when, one day, she walked into church and signed up for a Bible-study course. What an eye opener that was! she says. Next thing you know, I was on a quest for something I could really believe in. I traveled to places like Bhutan, Ecuador, and my local Starbucks looking for answers. Would I embrace Buddhism? New Age pseudo-science? Was I a freak for feeling the way I did, or were there other people out there just like me? I was grappling with serious questions. But, somehow, a lot of the things that were happening to me seemed, well, funny.
Equally comedic and insightful, Letting Go of God is Sweeney's brilliant one-woman show about her struggle with her faith. Grappling with the seeming contradictions in Adam and Eve, Noah, the Ten Commandments, and even the teachings of Jesus - and trying to understand the Bible's messages about morality, family values, and human suffering while faced with door-knocking Mormons and wise-cracking priests - Sweeney takes listeners on her very personal journey from God to not-God.
This performance was recorded on November 19, 2005, at the Ars Nova Theatre in New York City.
Julia Sweeney was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1989-94, and is best known for the mysteriously androgynous character, It's Pat!. She has also served as a consulting producer on Sex and the City and Desperate Housewives. Letting Go of God is her third monologue. She performed her first, God Said, Ha!, in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and on Broadway, as well as in a film produced by Quentin Tarantino. The CD version was nominated for a Grammy.
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"so honest, so good. though I have reached different conclusions than Sweeney, we have shared a large part of the journey and I appreciate her honesty. it was also just plain hilarious. (though I will always love Deepak!!! ha ha!)
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Jeannie (5 out of 5 stars)