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• passion play
  passion play

  noun

  a dramatic representation of the passion of Christ, as that given every ten years at the Bavarian village of Oberammergau.
• Passion play
  Passion play

  noun

  a play depicting the Passion of Christ

passion play

American  

Or Passion Play

noun

1. a dramatic representation of the passion of Christ, as that given every ten years at the Bavarian village of Oberammergau.

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Passion play British  

noun

1. a play depicting the Passion of Christ

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Etymology

Origin of passion play

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

The passion play has three storytelling forms: narrative scenes with dialogue, oratorio-like songs performed by a large choir and tableaux vivants of Old Testament moments.

From New York Times • Aug. 24, 2022

“But we have an endless desire to bring our passion play back to the stage and we are highly motivated.”

From Seattle Times • May 7, 2022

He is our voracious, inescapable character, like someone out of Saul Bellow or Paddy Chayefsky, a looming, blustery presence who has turned “Saturday Night Live” into a rollicking, national passion play.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 6, 2019

The painful 20-day passion play that followed — staged in committee rooms, Senate floor debates, hallway protests and millions of private conversations — did little to alter the future makeup of the Supreme Court.

From Washington Post • Oct. 6, 2018

The passion play given every ten years at Oberammergau, Bavaria, is a survival of the old mystery play.

From Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10 The Guide by Sylvester, Charles Herbert