Mark's Gospel presented by Fellowship for the Performing Arts at Mercury Theater

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...Mark's Gospel bops along nicely from John the Baptist to the empty tomb, accompanied by a cheesy digital map, demonstrating the trajectory of Jesus and his followers through Judea and revealing that the events of this earth-shattering life unfolded in a very small place."

Chicago Sun Times - Recommended

"...With wit, humor and a multiplicity of voices and attitudes, McLean brings a dramatically rooted clarity to what is a profoundly mysterious odyssey. And the actor (whom Chicago audiences first met last year when he starred as Satan's right-hand man in a stage adaptation of C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters) even manages to make the many parables Jesus spun -- tales that frequently left his own disciples scratching their heads -- seem more decipherable. (The disciples, as we are told, were given explanations later in private.)"

Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended

"...Max McLean's sonorous recitation of the book of Mark (most of it anyway) is certainly scrupulous, but all those miracles and parables grow wearisome when the main character remains a cipher. Jeffrey Fiske's beige staging for Fellowship for the Performing Arts adds little to keep the senses occupied, save for some map projections and lighting effects. As the heathens would say, it's duller than church."

Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...A fine, rubber-faced storyteller, McLean finds unexpected humor in the apostles’ slowness to catch on and in his portrayal of the Pharisees and Sadducees as stuffy skeptics. But opportunities for illumination seem missed. The quirks of Mark’s account, like the “problem” of the Messianic secret (Jesus repeatedly asks his followers to keep his miracles on the DL), go without comment. The closest we get to annotation is in Sage Marie Carter’s MapQuest-y projection design. Jesus himself remains a blank slate. When you consider the source material the infallible Word of God, we suppose, it must be hard to see where the drama needs punching up."

ChicagoCritic - Somewhat Recommended

"...I’m not sure that non-Christians or atheists will find Mark’s Gospel more than a long sermon no matter how well performed it may be by Max McLean. I felt like I was in church or a long lecture in theology class in college. I suppose Christians will enjoy this show. It is a believer’s vehicle that is respectful to Mark’s Gospel and therein lies my problem with the show."