Max McLean, Artistic Director Bill & Bridget Coughran, Glenn & Becky Gault, William & Alice Konze,

Hardie & Andrea Morgan, John & Jan Rogers, Walt & Anne Waldie

Present

Adapted for the stage by

Max McLean and Brian Watkins

WitH

MiCHAeL FReDeRiC JOeL RAiNWAteR CHRistA sCOtt-ReeD

there will be no intermission. Please silence all cellular phones and personal paging devices before the performance begins. thank you.

Executive Producer Ken Denison

Directed by Bill Castellino

Scenic Design Kelly James tighe

Lighting Design Michael Gilliam

Costume Design Nicole Wee

Original Music & Sound Design John Gromada

Projections Chris Kateff

General Management Aruba Productions

Production Stage Manager Lew Mead

Marketing & Press Representative southside entertainment

Casting Director Carol Hanzel

Great Divorce

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Max McLean, Founder and Artistic Director Fellowship for Performing Arts

C. s. Lewis’ The Great Divorce has been delighting—and puzzling—readers ever since its 1945 publication. the title is enigmatic. the “divorce” from what? And what is so “great” about it?

the novel is a response to William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell where the poet tried to imagine a point at which the differences between good and evil will somehow be resolved. that prompted Lewis to write of their final divorce.

in the novel, a group of Lewis’ most insightfully drawn characters takes a bus trip from the outskirts of Hell to the outskirts of Heaven. And as we go along for the ride, Lewis poses a most challenging question: Given the freedom to choose Heaven or Hell, what will we really do? Are the gates of Hell locked from the inside?

in this production, three actors give voice to the narrator of the story—a clear stand-in for Lewis—and bring more than a dozen characters to life, each making a case as to why they choose what they choose.

After journeying to the bowels of Hell in our production of Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, the allure of taking a celestial bus ride to the threshold of Heaven in The Great Divorce was too great to resist. thank you for getting on board and taking the journey with us.

Producer’s Note

ARe tHe GAtes OF HeLL

LOCKeD FROM tHe iNsiDe?

sceNes

Prologue: in the Library

Scene 1: A bus queue in the Grey town

Scene 2: inside the Bus

Scenes 3-12: the outskirts of Heaven

epilogue: in the Library

characters

Narrators ........ Michael Frederic, Joel Rainwater,.......................................................Christa scott-ReedWife ..............................................Christa scott-ReedHusband ....................................... Michael FredericWoman .......................................Christa scott-ReedMan ................................................ Michael FredericPoet/Critic ..................................Christa scott-ReedBowler Hat Man .............................. Joel RainwaterBoss Ghost ........................................ Joel Rainwaterspirit for Boss Ghost ................. Michael FredericArtist Ghost ................................Christa scott-Reed

spirit for Artist Ghost ..................... Joel RainwaterGhost of Robert’s Wife ...........Christa scott-ReedHardbitten Ghost ....................... Michael FredericGeorge MacDonald ................... Michael FredericGrumbler Ghost .......................Christa scott-ReedMother Ghost ............................Christa scott-Reedspirit for Mother Ghost ............ Michael Fredericsarah smith ...................................................................Ghost with Lizard............................ Joel Rainwaterspirit for Ghost with Lizard...Christa scott-Reed

Prologue: We meet our narrator, portrayed by all three performers.

scene 1: the narrator finds himself standing in a bus queue on a rainy street in the Grey town. time seems to have paused in a dreary moment just before night. He witnesses several confrontations among the citizens of the Grey town who are also waiting in the queue. Finally, the bus arrives.

scene 2: On board the bus, our narrator meets some inhabitants who have lived in the Grey town for a long time. each has their own selfish reasons for going on this trip—to be recognized for their great talent or genius, to get what they deserve or even to make a quick buck. Our narrator discovers that the town is huge but empty. People are so suspicious and quarrelsome that they live as far from each other as they can. the bus takes flight.

scenes 3-12: Following an extraordinary celestial journey, the bus comes to a stop in an expansive land of unparalleled beauty. As the passengers disembark, our narrator finds the grass of this new world to be so solid that it pierces his feet. He realizes that he is a “Ghost” so insubstantial in comparison to the solid reality of the New World that his steps can’t even bend a blade of grass.

in the distance, Celestial spirits descend from mountain highlands. One by one each Ghost is greeted by a spirit, often someone they knew on earth. each Ghost is invited to

continue the journey into this New World by going higher up and farther in, and to grow more “solid” on the way.

there’s a hard-working, proud man who simply can’t believe the spirit chosen for him was more deserving of this world than he. there’s the artist who is more attached to her reputation than anything else Paradise might offer. there’s a businessman who tries without success to take some of the fruit back to the Grey town. there’s a wife who has come to regain control of her husband. And there’s the skeptic far too clever to be taken in by Heavenly “propaganda.”

the spirit of the author George MacDonald, our narrator’s hero, comes at last as a guide through the beautiful country. they witness other Ghosts and spirits—a woman who cannot stop grumbling and complaining, a mother demanding to take her son back to the Grey town, a simple woman who is honored in this New World as “one of the great ones” and finally a man who wants to stay but can’t decide whether he can stand to part with his pet lizard, a prerequisite for staying.

Along the way MacDonald helps our narrator, offering encouragement and guidance. After witnessing all these scenes our narrator is confronted with a vision of his immortal soul, looking after his every move as he lives each moment making one choice that could have been another.

epilogue: the narrator is at a crossroad. Given all that has just happened, how will he now live?

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sYNoPsIs

Who’s Who

MIchael FrederIc Re-cently concluded the ex-tended off-Broadway run of Bill W. and Dr. Bob at the soho Playhouse. Other New York credits include A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial

Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center of New York City (Clurman Lab), The Eyes of Others (New Ohio), Summer and Smoke (theatre Row), Night Over Taos (iNtAR – directed by estelle Parsons), and The Sky Over Nineveh (HeRe). Regional credits include The God Game (Hudson stage Com-pany), August: Osage County, The Unexpected Guest, Doubt (Fulton theatre), Doubt (Cleve-land Play House), The 39 Steps (Florida studio theatre and Actors’ Playhouse), 26 Miles (two River theatre and Round House theatre), The Hound of the Baskervilles, Around the World in 80 Days, A Christmas Carol (Public theatre of Maine), Watson (Gretna theatre), Play by Play (stageworks/Hudson). tV credits include Royal Pains, The Men Who Built America and numerous commercials. MFA from the Uni-versity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. www.michaelfrederic.com.

Joel raINWater BROADWAY tOUR: The Lion King, 2nd Nation-al tour. OFF-BROAD-WAY: Homer’s Odyssey (45 Bleecker). Other New York Credits include Taming of the Shrew (shakespeare NJ), The Boss (Metropol-

itan Playhouse), Dead Dogs (78th street theatre Lab) and A Doll’s House (stu-dio tisch). ReGiONAL: Two Men of Flor-ence (directed by edward Hall) at the Hun-tington, Hamlet at Arkansas Rep, A Christmas Carol and The Little Foxes at ACt, A Behand-ing in Spokane and Sleuth at the Lake Dillon theatre, Salome at Aurora theatre Compa-ny, Under Milk Wood at Porchlight theatre Company, Zenobia with Allied Playwrights, and Othello at California shakespeare the-atre. extensive workshops with slant theatre Project, Kitchen Dog, and the New Harmony Project. Joel received his BFA in theatre Per-formance from the University of evansville and his MFA in Acting from American Conservatory theater’s professional training program. Proud member of Actors’ equity. For Mom.

chrIsta scott-reed BROADWAY: The Pitmen Painters. OFF-BROAD-WAY: The Freedom of the City (irish Repertory the-atre); The Talls (second stage); Celebration and The Room, The Bald So-prano and the Lesson,

10x20 and 10x25 (Atlantic theater Com-pany); Beasley’s Christmas Party, Pullman Car Hiawatha and Museum (Keen Compa-ny); Deathbed (McGinn-Cazale theatre); Mar-ion Bridge (Urban stages); The Voysey In-heritance (the Mint). ReGiONAL tHeAtRe: The Little Dog Laughed (intiman theatre); Argonautika and Honour (Berkeley Repertory theatre); Restoration Comedy and The Food Chain (the Old Globe); The Diary of Anne Frank (Paper Mill Playhouse); As You Like It, Crimes of the Heart, and the world premiere of Charles L. Mee’s Limonade Tous les Jours (Ac-tors theatre of Louisville). Other Regional: Cin-cinnati Playhouse in the Park, Repertory the-atre of st. Louis, Pioneer theatre, Barrington stage, syracuse stage, Denver Center theatre Company, Cleveland Playhouse, GeVa the-atre, Olney theatre Center and more. FiLM & teLeVisiON: 30 Rock, 666 Park Avenue, Eden, Gossip Girl, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Love Life, The Impossibilities, New Amsterdam and As the World Turns.

c.s. leWIs (Author) (1898-1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth centu-ry and arguably the most influential Christian writer of his day. He was a Fellow and tutor in english literature at Oxford University until 1954 when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance english at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. His major contributions in literary criticism, children’s literature fan-tasy literature and popular theology brought him international renown. He wrote more than 30 books, allowing him to reach a vast audience, and his works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year. His most distinguished and popular accomplish-ments include: The Chronicles of Narnia, The Great Divorce, Mere Christianity and The Screwtape Letters.

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MaX McleaN (Adaptor & Producer) Previous adaptations include C.s. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, Genesis and Mark’s GospeI. Adapted and performed C. s. Lewis’ The Weight of Glory at Oxford University (2014). As an actor, cre-ated the role of screwtape in New York and on National tour; Mark in Mark’s Gospel (Jeff Award for solo Performance) and storyteller in Genesis (Lamb’s, NYC). Favorite roles include stanley, A Streetcar Named Desire; Othello and snoopy, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. McLean has narrated the Bible five times as well as John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress and Classics of the Christian Faith. His narrations received four Audie Award nominations. Max enjoys a round of golf. For sharon, Mom, Dad, Rachel, Julia, Mark, scott, emery, Miles, Macy and Kate. ephesians 2:10.

BrIaN WatKINs (Adaptor) is a Brooklyn-based playwright whose plays include Wyoming (pre-miering January 2015 with Lesser America in NYC), My Daughter Keeps Our Hammer (New York Times and timeOutNY Critics’ Pick, 2014 world premiere at the Flea theater), General Store (selected by 2012 seven Devils Playwrights Conference), Games for an Empty Cul-de-Sac, The Rebel and His Leg, Study That House, A Scavenge and High Plains (UK premiere with Underbelly, edinburgh). His plays have been produced or developed with Rattlestick Playwrights theater, Williamstown theatre Festival, LAByrinth theatre, the Flea theater, Lesser America, iNtAR, Horse trade theatre, seven Devils Playwrights Conference, b. swibel presents, id theatre, edinburgh Fringe, Wide eyed Productions, Wildclaw and Route 66 in Chicago, among others. Member of the Dramatists Guild.

BIll castellINo (Director) WORLD PReMieRes: Grumpy Old Men, Jolson, Dr. Radio, Cagney, Dorian Gray, Lizzie Borden, Heartbeats, Miklat, Fishwrap, House Divided, Singing Weatherman, Happy Holidays, Presidents, Bell’aria, Crash Club, Before You Go, Beautiful Dreamer, Another Summer, Breathe. Also: Storyville, Ionescopade, Tarzan, Rent, Nightclub Cantata, Fame, Chess, Rap Master Ronnie, Last Word, Mardi Gras, Rocky Horror, Spelling Bee, Carousel, Drood, Godspell, La Cage, Music Man, West Side Story, Joseph, Tommy, Little Shop, Beehive, Evita, Oliver, Cabaret, Abyssinia, The Last Five Years, Spitfire Grill, Smokey Joe’s Cafe, Hair, Slab Boys, etc. Director of tV and National tours. Member sDC, AeA, DG. Awards: Jeff, Carbonelle, telly, 4 LA

Weekly, 11 Drama-Logue Awards. Nominations: Lortel, Off-Broadway Alliance, sD and LA Critics, Broadway World, Audelco and others.

KellY JaMes tIGhe (Scenic Design) OFF BROADWAY/NAtiONAL tOURs: The Fantasticks, Almost Heaven, The Time of Mendel’s Trouble, Nunsense (Anniversary pro-duction at the Cherry Lane), Movin’ Out, Cats, Shear Maddness, Mooseltoe – A New Musical, 101 Dalmatians, Triumph (Las Vegas Hilton). ReGiONAL: san Jose Rep, Laguna Playhouse, Michigan’s Cherry County Playhouse, Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, sacramento theater Company, Diablo theater Company, Contra Costa Musical theater, Center Repertory Company, Gateway Playhouse. several National television shows and commercials including Disney, KitKat, Oxygen Network, Animal Planet, etc. Online at Kellyjamestighe.com.

MIchael GIllIaM (Lighting Design) BROADWAY: Bonnie and Clyde, Brooklyn, Big River, Stand-Up Tragedy. West eND: Gershwin Alone. OFF-BROADWAY: The Best Is Yet To Come, Striking 12, Blue, End Of The World Party, Zooman And The Sign, Menopause The Musical. NAtiONAL tOURs: Looped, Peter Pan, Brooklyn, Guys And Dolls, Big River. ReGiONAL: Arena stage, the Alley theatre, the Globe theatres, Mark taper Forum, the La Jolla Playhouse, seattle Repertory, the Goodman theatre, the Guthrie theater, the Pasadena Playhouse, the Geffen Playhouse, the Kennedy Center, Ford’s theatre, Philadelphia theatre Company, the Prince Music theatre, Denver Center, Arizona theatre Company. AWARDs: Los Angeles Ovation Awards, Drama-Logue Awards, Garland Awards, san Diego Critics’ Circle Awards and the 1999 Career Achievement Award from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle.

NIcole Wee (Costume Design) OFF-BROADWAY: Closer Than Ever (Dir. Richard Maltby) and Storyville (York theatre), the Body Politic (59e59), The Sensational Josephine Baker (emerging Artists theatre). OFF-OFF BROADWAY: Tiny Dynamite (Origin theatre), The Wundelsteipen and Other Difficult Roles for Young People (the Flea), Letters to the End of the World and As Wide As I Can See (At Hand theatre), First Prize (kef Productions). ReGiONAL: Crazy For You (Muhlenberg summer Music theatre), I Do! I Do! (Peterborough Players), Tosca (Boheme Opera NJ), Ruined (Regional premiere, Florida studio theatre, Best Costume Design - Best of the suncoast 2010). MFA: New York University. www.nicolewee.com

Who’s Who

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JohN GroMada (Composer/Sound Design) More than 30 Broadway pro-ductions including The Trip to Bountiful (tony Nomination), The Best Man (Drama Desk Award), Clybourne Park, The Columnist, Seminar, Man and Boy, The Road to Mecca, Next Fall, Proof, Dividing the Estate, Prelude to a Kiss, A Bronx Tale, Well, Rabbit Hole, A Streetcar Named Desire, Twelve Angry Men, Sight Unseen, A Few Good Men. His other New York credits include Old Hats, My Name is Asher Lev, Measure for Measure at the Delacorte, The Orphans’ Home Cycle (Drama Desk and Henry Hewes Awards), By The Way, Meet Vera Stark, The Screwtape Letters, Shipwrecked! (Lucille Lortel Award), The Singing Forest, Julius Caesar, The Skriker (Drama Desk Award), Machinal (Obie Award) and many more. His regional theatre credits number more than 300 at major region-al theaters and abroad. More info and music, visit johngromada.com

chrIs KateFF (Projection Design) Designs pro-jections and creates artwork for live theater. OFF-BROADWAY: Rated P…For Parenthood (Westside theatre); Last Dance; The Road to Qatar (York theatre); Signs of Life (Marjorie s. Deane Little theater); Wine Lovers (triad theater and touring); Die Mommy Die (New World stages); Esoterica (DR2 theater). Off-Broadway assistant design: Forever Dusty, Now. Here. This (Richard DiBella, designer). Broadway assis-tant design: Ring of Fire, Jersey Boys (Michael Clark, designer); Ghost: The Musical (Jon Driscoll, designer).

leWIs Mead (Technical Supervisor) Broadway engineering credits include A Chorus Line, Dreamgirls, Bring Back Birdie. Broadway Design credits include Onward Victoria, Tom Sawyer, Urinetown, The King and I and Wonderful Town. touring credits include Julie Andrews, Leslie Uggams, The Screwtape Letters. Lew is the founder of ProMix, a theatrical audio company, syntonic Design Group, a corporate audio company and Autograph A2D, an audio distribution company located in New York City and London.

carol haNZel (Casting) BROADWAY: Swing!, Sally Marr and Her Escorts. NAtiONAL tOURs: The Screwtape Letters, Swing!, Defending the Caveman, Girl’s Night. OFF-BROADWAY: Mardi Gras/The Last Word, Cougar The Musical, Ionescopade, March Madness, Bodega Bay, The Screwtape Letters, My Vaudeville Man,

Wanda’s World, Signs of Life, Dr. Sex, Theda Bara and the Frontier Rabbi, Dorian Gray, Trophies, Identical Twins from Baltimore. ReGiONAL: The Beautiful Dark, Clybourne Park, Farragut North, Handicapped People in Their Formal Attire, Divorce Party, Cagney, Backwards in High Heels, Tarzan, Legally Blonde, Lost Boy Found in Whole Foods, Dracula, Odd, Hats!, Flight of the Lawnchair Man, Hannah, The Good Counselor, The Tin Pan Alley Rag, Lizzie Borden. seRies tV: Peg + Cat, The Wonder Pets, Hi-5, Where in Time is Carmen San Diego?, Globe Trekker. FeAtURe FiLM: A Very Serious Person, The Guru (dance sequence casting) and over 2,500 commercials.

southsIde eNtertaINMeNt specializes in publicity and marketing services for national concert tours and events. southside’s primary partners, Debra Akins and Cheryl Anteau, are both 20-year music industry veterans who have represented a wide array of national tour-ing artists and speakers including Amy Grant, Michael W. smith, Casting Crowns, Veggietales Live!, third Day, steven Curtis Chapman, Jeremy Camp, Newsboys, Jars of Clay, Francesca Battistelli and more. southside has also repre-sented the multi-artist holiday production The Story Tour featuring best-selling author Max Lucado, Sean Hannity’s Holiday Concert Salute to the Troops and concert events at prestigious venues such as Washington D.C.’s the Kennedy Center and New York City’s Carnegie Hall.

KeN deNIsoN/aruBa ProductIoNs is cur-rently the executive Producer for C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters and The Great Divorce. His company ARUBA PRODUCTIONS, with senior staff members Brian Letchworth and Amy Polan Clarke, are the General Managers for C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters and The Great Divorce, as well as Almost Heaven, Mozart: The Rock Opera, Doctor Zhivago (Worldwide), Human Nature: The Motown Show at the Venetian Las Vegas and Worldwide, as well as numerous projects in development for Human Nature entertainment and Reach Out entertainment. Projects also in development include A Moment in Time, An Officer and a Gentleman, Stormy Weather, Martin Luther On Trial and Take Me Home (Australia/New Zealand). Ken is also a Producer of the Broadway-bound First Wives Club The Musical. His experience as a Producer and General Manager extends over 24 years, including numerous original pre-Broadway and Broadway productions. He was the Associate

Who’s Who

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ADMINISTRATIONAssociate General Manager .................. Brian LetchworthBusiness Manager ..................................Amy Polan Clarketour Coordinator .....................................ethan Whitehead

PRODUCTIONAssociate General Manager ............... Robyn sunderlandAssistant to the Director ...................Christian R. FlemingAssistant sound Designer ....................................Matt OttoAssociate Projection Designer .................steve ChannonProjection Consultant ....................................... Jeffrey CadyProduction Property Master ...........................Katie Martinsound engineer ................................. Geoffrey D. FishburnProduction technicians ...Chelsea Mylett & eric Websterscenery Construction .......Daedalus Design & Production inc.Legal Counsel .....Jason Baruch, sendroff & Baruch LLPAccounting ..............................ted Angowski & AssociatesBanking.... JP Morgan Chase, Rita Pelosi & Grace CorreaAuditors ..................... Lambrides, Arnold, Moulthrop LLP

FellOwShIP FOR PeRFORMINg ARTSManaging Director .................................. Christine MetzgerDonor Relations ...................................................Dan RocheCreative Director .....................................................Ben GeistCommunications Director .................................Paul CozbyController ..........................................................Norma MorrisOffice Manager ....................................................... Jen MaalaDonations Manager .............................. Anna Marie Wood Database Manager ..................................... Josiah PetersonAssistant Bookkeeper .....................................Allan selmaninformation technology ................................ Jox teodocioDigital Marketing ...................................Big Click syndicateAssistant to Creative Director ...................Phil LaskowskiFund Development ............................... PennellChing, LLCAccountants ............................ted Angowski & AssociatesAuditors ..................... Lambrides, Arnold, Moulthrop LLPWeb ..................................Ani Manjikian, Josh McCormackAudio engineer ..................................................... Brent Matz

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staFF For The GreaT Divorce

GeNeral MaNaGeMeNtARUBA PRODUCtiONs, LLC

Ken Denison - 212.293.7070 ext. 21

Press & MarKetING rePreseNtatIvesOUtHsiDe eNteRtAiNMeNt

Cheryl Anteau, Debra Akins - 321.747.0077

GrouP sales dIrectorAndrew s. Flanigan

866.476.8707 (toll Free)

ProducerFeLLOWsHiP FOR PeRFORMiNG ARts, iNC.

Max McLean, President & Artistic Director - 212.582.2920

special permission for this adaptation granted by the C.s. Lewis Company, Ltd.

Producer of the original tony Award-winning production of Disney’s The Lion King in all domestic and international markets. His pro-ducing credits also include Bombay Dreams and the tony-nominated Broadway revival of The Elephant Man, starring Billy Crudup and Rupert Graves.

Fellowship for Performing arts (Producer) creates theatre from a Christian worldview that engages a diverse audience. Founded by Max McLean in 1992, FPA has developed and presented award-winning theatrical produc-

tions in major theatres and performing arts centers across America. it has also produced critically acclaimed audiobook narrations of classic Christian works. FPA board members include Katherine Leary Alsdorf, Glenn Gault, Max McLean, Hardie Morgan, Daniel Quigley and Anne Waldie. A member of eCFA since 1996, FPA is 501(c)3 non-profit, donor-sup-ported arts organization.

Information in “Who’s Who” is provided by the artists. Where opinions are expressed, they are not necessarily those of the theatre, producers or management.

Who’s Who

the Actors and stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors’ equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and stage Managers in the United states.

special thanks: scott senchak, Art Lavis and Bob Rendon at Production Resource Group, scott Kalada at Masque sound and Recording.

S i n c e 1 9 9 2

Founded by Max McLean, President & Artistic Director

1674 Broadway, new York, new York 10019

212.582.2920 info@fpatheatre.com

theatre from a christian Worldview that engages a Diverse audience.

cS LeWiSthe Great Divorce

“WorLD cLaSS theatre!” WorLD MaGazine

cS LeWiSthe ScreWtape LetterS

“pure GeniuS!” nationaL revieW

Mark’S GoSpeLchicaGo’S Jeff aWarD

“BeSt SoLo perforMance”

Jan 2-4 Washington D.C.Jan 16-17 sacramentoJan 30-31 Los AngelesFeb 5-7 san FranciscoFeb 13-14 salt Lake CityFeb 27-28 seattle

Mar 13-14 PortlandMar 26-28 ChicagoApr 10-11 MilwaukeeApr 18 Grand RapidsApr 24-25 MinneapolisMay 1-2 Cincinnati

FPA Performance schedule for C. s. Lewis’ The Great Divorce

For up-to-date tour schedule visit CSlewisOnStage.com.