According to Google, in 534 BC in ancient Greece, the stage was recognized as a form of self-expression, with the first recorded actor, Thespis, and since then, actors and actresses have performed stories they feel are worth telling; some are original, while others are based on books. The Bible is the best-selling book ever, so it is not surprising that it is reenacted or adapted in forms like Broadway, off-Broadway, and community plays, written to reenact the events in this special, popular, and meaningful book in varying production sizes. These productions take place in various locations and theaters; however, the message doesn't change.

Peter's Sword, by Jacob Thomas Vilayil, is a three-act stage adaptation that presents various New Testament scenes involving Jesus, his disciples, the Pharisees, and other side characters. The play's scenes, taken from the Bible's New Testament, span his human life on earth, beginning with Herod killing the babies after hearing from the Wise Men about Jesus's birth, and continuing through his crucifixion and resurrection, recognizable to readers familiar with the Bible. The author takes artistic liberties with the dialogue, so the scenes aren't word-for-word from the Bible, but are rewritten in more modern-day English. The scenes also offer alternative points of view from the Bible, with many involving Jesus "behind the scenes," showing a possible way things might have been before, during, and after momentous events.

Reading through Peter's Sword, it is not difficult to imagine it as a stage production; the author includes characters' thoughts and feelings, which normally would be portrayed and felt through the performance and audience, but reading these details adds another dimension to the reader's experience. I enjoyed how the author chose to include scenes that featured the Pharisees and Priests, with additional conversation between themselves and Judas (the scenes when he accepted and then rejected their money to betray Jesus); I appreciated this because while the Bible gives the reader what they "need," not necessarily what we "want," the artistic liberties taken by the author, from a Biblical foundation, make sense and make the reader think.
The target audience for Vilayil's Peter's Sword includes more educated adult readers; this is mostly because of the bigger, more complex language, and comprehension is easier with life experience and foreknowledge; any age or intelligence level is welcome, as there is nothing wrong with this subject matter, and becoming more familiar with it is never a bad thing.

Amazon Link:https://www.amazon.com/Peters-Sword-Jacob-Thomas-Vilayil/