Religion in Equus
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Peter Shaffers Equus has now held the stage for years. Having survived even the vicissitudes (Wandel) of translation, it continues to fill houses in several European capitals. Its appeal must emanate from something other than awesome acting or an imaginative plot. What is the secret of its durability? The play forces audiences to ask the ultimate meaning of life.
That, of course, is usually the business of religion. Whenever the traditional churches fail in their mission to show the holy and to respond to grace, the search for the ultimate meaning of life be-comes the task of secular culture, especially of the theater.
The protagonist of Equus is not Dr. Dysart, not Alan, nor Helan, not Alan's parents, but - as the title of the play shows - Equus. Like we know, Equus is not really a horse (it's not Nugget), E-quus is the image of God...