Kudos once again to our very own Marianne Bachers, who worked as a consultant to the writers of this new play about Jim Jones Peoples Temple, that is opening soon at Berkeley Repertory Theatre.  Congratulations, Marianne!

PEOPLES TEMPLE

written by Leigh Fondakowski with Greg Pierotti, Stephen Wangh and Margo Hall
directed by Leigh Fondakowski
April 15–May 29, 2005
The Roda Theatre
WORLD PREMIERE

As head writer of The Laramie Project, Leigh Fondakowski with her collaborators sculpted interviews with residents of Laramie, Wyoming, into a stirring portrait of the effects of hatred on a small American town. Her newest work, Peoples Temple, is a riveting examination of the charged events surrounding the 1978 murder-suicide of 913 members of Jim Jones’ Peoples Temple in Guyana and the unique mixture of radical local politics and Pentecostal fervor that fueled this organization. After decades spent enshrouded in secrecy by bitterness and remorse, the stories of Jonestown survivors are now being told, many for the first time. Splicing together gospel music and found text with testimony from former Peoples Temple members, families of the victims and Bay Area community leaders, Peoples Temple evokes empathy, humor, shock and insight. A quest to make sense of the inexplicable, and perhaps find healing power in the process, the play explores this historic event with a candor only hindsight can provide.

Also, about The Laramie Project:

http://www.hbo.com/films/laramie/