Campus Currents

Inspiration of Greateness

Two years ago, Bradley Nelson walked into a used bookstore, walked back out with a copy of C.S. Lewis’s The Great Divorce, and little idea of what would stem from this purchase.

As the Walla Walla College student read the book, a play script began to take shape in his imagination.

“I thought, ‘I wonder if anyone has ever made this into a play, and if not, how hard would it be?’” Nelson says.

Nelson met with Marilynn Loveless, artistic director of “wwcdrama,” and talked about the playwriting process, as well as any copywriting issues that might create road blocks.

Loveless showed a great interest in Nelson’s dream, and before long they contacted the C.S. Lewis estate in England. Nelson was soon immersed in the process of adapting the novel for the stage.

“They asked me to submit the script for review, then they sent me back a list of changes they wanted me to make,” Nelson says. “I did try to stay very close to the original book as much as I could. Part of the success is that I started with a really great original. About 85 percent of the script’s dialogue is quoted directly from the book.”

After making most of the changes suggested by the estate, Nelson resubmitted the script in November 2000 and was granted an adaptation license.

The Great Divorce follows one man’s journey between heaven and hell. He finds that many people are walking in “the valley of the shadow of life.” These are people who have taken a bus ride out of hell to a nondescript town, where they still hold on to vices that keep them from heaven.
During the play, spirits from heaven interact with the people, trying to help them overcome obstacles that keep them from moving from the valley to heaven.

One unique aspect of this play is the interplay of projected video images on a screen with actors performing on the stage. Much time was spent coordinating the dialogue between the previously recorded actors and those on stage.

Nelson’s play has been well received. A reviewer for the local newspaper Valley Times says, “Walla Walla College student Bradley Nelson has adapted C.S. Lewis’s The Great Divorce into an imaginative script, and Marilynn Loveless has directed an amazing amalgamation of video and stage production into a wonderful evening of thoughtful entertainment.” W

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