C .S. Lewis on Stage: Further Up & Further In is onstage at the Eisemann Center in Richardson Oct. 13-23. The play stars Max McLean as Lewis, and features an award-winning creative team led by Kelly Tighe. It is produced by Fellowship for Performing Arts, using Lewis’ own words through an immersive, state of the art theatrical experience.
“When Lewis moved from vigorous debunker to believer, it wasn’t obvious he would become the most influential Christian writer of the past hundred years,” said actor and playwright Max McLean. “Why did the BBC give Lewis a national audience to deliver unprecedently popular radio talks that would become Mere Christianity? How did Hitler’s devious charm influence the writing of The Screwtape Letters? What made Lewis such an effective apologist/evangelist to skeptics? Was it prayer? His expectation of the second coming? Or was it his deep longing for Heaven that also inspired much of his writing including Narnia and The Great Divorce?”
Further Up & Further In
“C. S. Lewis on Stage: Further Up & Further In” explores these questions and more through startling imagery, evocative music, and Lewis’ amazing storytelling. A standalone production that builds on the story of Lewis’ conversion as a young man, as told in the national hit play C.S. Lewis on Stage: The Most Reluctant Convert.
The creative team is led by Kelly Tighe, set design (National Tour, Cats); John Gromada’s original score (Broadway, Tony Nomination The Trip to Bountiful); Harry Feiner’s visual imagery (Off-Broadway, Paradise Lost); and Geoffrey Fishburn’s lighting (Off-Broadway, Martin Luther on Trial). They are all under the direction of Ken Denison (The Lion King, associate producer).
Fellowship for Performing Arts
The organization was founded by Artistic Director Max McLean. They are a New York City-based production company whose mission is to produce theatre and film from a Christian worldview to engage a diverse audience. In addition to annual seasons at Theatre Row in New York City, they produce coast-to-coast tours in both major performing arts venues and university theatres. McLean is the 2022 recipient of the C. S. Lewis Foundation Award for Distinguished Lifetime Contributions in Faith and Dramatic Arts.
FPA also produced the hit film The Most Reluctant Convert: The Untold Story of C.S. Lewis, which is available to stream now on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play and YouTube, as well as to purchase on DVD and Blu-ray. For more information visit, FPAtheatre.com.
C. S. Lewis on Stage Performances
C. S. Lewis on Stage: Further Up & Further In” runs through Oct. 23 at the Eisemann Center, 2351 Performance Drive in Richardson. Ticket prices range from $39-$99, available online at CSLewisonStage.com or by phone at 972-744-4650. For groups of ten or more, email groups@fpatheatre.com. Special discount tickets are available for $30 for those under 30 (ID required) at the Box Office, which opens one hour prior to performances.
