The Killing of a Priest
This scenario is the second part in the trilogy about violence, and here it is violence and anger which is explored. It is about righteous anger which turns you into a killer. It is about revenge which burns away the compassion for human life.
The scenario is played in groups of 4-6 players which play in parallel. In each group, one is the priest, and the rest consists of a group of friends who are breaking into the home of the priest. What was planned as a robbery ends up becoming a scene of violence. The young friends all have their personal reasons to hate the priest and when they find evidence in his home, they take it as an excuse to end his life.
The body of the priest is represented by a chair and because of this, players are given a chance to go into the darkest part of their anger and to let go of it, without anyone being harmed. It could be described as a brave process of stepping into the shadow, to see what is really there.
The first act ends with a pool of blood and a chair that has been smashed to pieces with a baseball bat. In the second act, players are given buckets of water, paper and floorcloths to clean the floor, pick up the pieces, and to mourn their lost childhoods as they move slowly into the light. The priest comes back in the second act, not as the villain but as the presence of their true priest nature. In this way, forgiveness can happen for the players who choose that path, but there is no pressure to do so. The scenario ends with a water ceremony where all players gather in one big circle and take turns to wash their hands and face in the water of life.
More photos from the scenario when it was played at Blackbox Copenhagen in 2024.