York Mystery Plays, 16th of July 2006 (Sun) III: Pentecost

In the end of the play, the characters let go of the balloons with which their aspirations went upwards.
With the balloons rising high, every audience was watching the blue dots until they disappeared into the sky.
It was a spirit-up-lifting scene that spoke to a variety of sentiments in a universal language of image.

We don't need to hold our hope object tight.
Loose our hold, look to it, an entire picture of it will come to mind,
And we will be able to find a path right.

Balloon is a cliched symbol of hope, but sometimes the simpler a symbol is, a more effective reminder it is.



It was toward the evening when "Pentecost", one of the mystery plays, was presented. These blue bubbles were flying against the natural backdrop coloured by sunset blue. In the performance, this scene was used to represent the ascension of the disciples.

This play used to be performed by the trade of potters in the Middle Ages. This time it was brought forth by Pocklington School, a boarding and day public school in the north of England. These teenage actors dressed up like potters and they even composed a dance of the potters. The beautiful smiles and fearless innocence of these youthful performers have best annotated the idea of faith that is central to the original play, however it is interpreted within or without the religious context.