Arts & Entertainment

'The Screwtape Letters' Come to Walnut Creek This Weekend

A poor unwitting soul on Earth is the target of Satan's top assistant, Screwtape, as he guides his witless charge Wormwood on a quest to capture the soul. What ensues is one of the English language's most beloved books, The Screwtape Letters. 
And now the theatrical adaptation of the book by C.L. Lewis comes to Walnut Creek for a weekend run. It opens tonight (Friday, June 21) at 8 p.m.; Saturday, June 22 at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, June 23 at 3 p.m. at the Hoffman Theater, 1601 Civic Dr.  

Presented by Fellowship for the Performing Arts, The Screwtape Letters is produced and directed by award-winning actor Max McLean, who created the role in New York.

The Screwtape Letters creates a topsy-turvy, morally inverted universe set in an eerily stylish office in hell, where God is called the “Enemy” and the devil is referred to as “Our Father below.”  The play follows His Abysmal Sublimity Screwtape, Satan’s top psychiatrist (due to his profound understanding of human nature), and his slavish creature-demon Toadpipe, as they train an apprentice demon, Wormwood, on how to ruin the life and damn the soul of an unsuspecting human on earth.

Find out what's happening in Walnut Creekwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Screwtape is portrayed by award winning actor Brent Harris, who played Scar in the National Tour of The Lion King, Lucifer in Dr. Faustus, Iago in Othello, Salieri in Amadeus, Olivier in Orson’s Shadow, Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird, and the title role in Macbeth

Along with The Chronicles of Narnia (including The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe), The Great Divorce and Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters is still one of Lewis’ most popular and influential works.  The book's piercing insight into human nature and the lucid and humorous way Lewis makes his readers squirm in self-recognition made it an immediate success.  When first published in 1942 it brought worldwide fame to this little-known Oxford don including the cover of Time Magazine. 

Find out what's happening in Walnut Creekwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Tickets are $39 - $59.  There are a limited number of student seats for $25 (student ID required).  For groups of 10 or more (including student groups) call 866.476.8707.

To purchase tickets, visit www.ScrewtapeonStage.com, call 925.943.7469 or visit the Lesher Center Box Office between 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays; 12 p.m.-7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays; 12 p.m.-6 p.m. on Sundays, or 30 minutes prior to the performance.



Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here