Škofja Loka Passion Play
The Škofja Loka Passion Play: A Unique Historical Spectacle
The Škofja Loka Passion Play is a penitential Passion procession based on the text by Father Romuald Marušič from 1721. It depicts Christ’s suffering in twenty scenes, complemented by biblical motifs from the Old and New Testaments. This unique play combines an early Mediterranean-type Passion procession with a Passion play typical of Central European countries.
Photo, courtesy of: pasijon.si
Key Features:
- Oldest preserved dramatic Slovenian text: The play’s foundation is a dramatic text of 844 verses in the dialect of the time it was written.
- Amateur folk theatre: It is performed as an amateur folk theatre, based on the oldest preserved stage direction book in Europe.
- Music and song: The spoken text is complemented by music and singing, with rich content provided by horsemen, crusaders, flagellants, Adam’s children, colorful fraternities and guilds, musicians, and singers.
- Large-scale production: Around 900 performers and 400 other collaborators participate, all of whom are volunteers.
- Open-air stages: The play takes place on four open-air stages in the streets and squares of the medieval town center of Škofja Loka.
Performance Details:
The procession starts from the former military barracks on Partizanska cesta and proceeds along the road to the old town center of Škofja Loka. The scenes are played one after another at each of the four locations:
- Mestni trg (Town Square): The first scene takes place here, in front of the plague monument.
- Pod gradom (Under the Castle): The procession continues to this location, where the scenes are played for the second time.
- Spodnji trg (Lower Square): The scenes are played for the third time at this location, near the crossroads of Škofja Loka–Puštal–Poljanska dolina.
- Spodnji trg (Lower Square): The final scenes are played in front of the old town granary.
Once all the scenes have been played at each location, the entire cast returns to the starting point. Due to the complexity of the performance, the Škofja Loka Passion Play is staged every six years.
Photo, courtesy of: pasijon.si
Historical Significance:
The Škofja Loka Passion Play is considered the oldest preserved dramatic text in the Slovene language. The manuscript, created in 1721 by the Capuchin friar Father Romuald Marušič, is kept in the Capuchin Monastery in Škofja Loka.
Additional Information:
Would you like to know more about the history of the play, its characters, or the specific locations where it is performed? Go to the official website of the Škofja Loka Passion.
