La Pasión de Granadilla 2026

·39 min·3 clips

Alonso, a first-time Jesus actor, shares how reading the Bible and studying Mel Gibson's film shaped his portrayal.

1. Mirando al Sur interviews the lead actor and an organizer of La Pasión de Granadilla de Abona 2026, a 20th-anniversary outdoor Passion play in Tenerife. 2. Alonso Aranda plays Jesus Christ for the first time, having previously played a crowd member in 2023 and later a Sanhedrin priest; Gara Herrera is a production organizer for the association Apasionados por Cristo. 3. The episode's core question is how the creative team renews a well-known story for a 20th edition while managing an audience that grew past 1,000 last year. 4. Alonso describes reading the Bible and watching the Mel Gibson film La Pasión to understand how Jesus spoke and treated people, calling the mental preparation 'quite hard' due to the weight of representing 'the most important person in history.' 5. Director Kevin and Alonso co-wrote the 2026 script starting in May–June 2025, reviewing recordings of past editions and selecting scenes to renovate so returning audience members would notice change without losing the historical core. 6. The production team, including parish priest Don Jesús, spent the summer analysing prior scripts and biblical texts to identify which scenes could be updated without altering the historical narrative. 7. Rehearsals for the lead roles began in September–October 2025, with the full ensemble of 100-plus actors joining from January 2026, following a Tuesday–Thursday schedule. 8. A week of bad weather from a named storm disrupted the final rehearsal period, forcing one session to move indoors to the convent square; the first full run-through only happened the day before the interview. 9. Last year's production drew over 1,000 spectators despite only 600 seats, with the street closed for standing attendees; this year capacity remains at 600 chairs supplemented by two large projection screens. 10. For the 20th anniversary the candlelit procession, previously walking to the Calvario hermitage, will return to the original church where the play debuted — the audience is asked to bring their own candles because 500 were not enough last year. 11. New additions this year include an expanded role for the Granadilla brass band across multiple scenes rather than only the descent-from-cross sequence, plus a surprise video projection shown before the play begins. 12. Singer Goyo Tavío will perform live at an undisclosed moment; Gara says watching the rehearsal made both Tavío and crew members cry, calling it 'the most emotional part of this year.' 13. Alonso's favourite scenes are the Garden of Gethsemane and the Last Supper; he says the hardest stretch will be the Via Crucis from Pilate's handover through the Crucifixion. 14. Gara highlights a new Roman entrance sequence and the post-descent moment with Mary as scenes likely to provoke strong emotional reactions from the public. 15. The production has roughly 200 people in total including actors, costume, makeup, sound, and stage crew; 100-plus performers appear on stage simultaneously during crowd scenes. 16. Alonso recounts an anecdote from last year where his cleaning of the actor playing Jesus revealed real wounds from the whipping sequence, causing a scramble with only 8–10 minutes before the resurrection scene. 17. The episode is conversational and warm in tone, with the interview conducted partly by phone with a third guest, Román Luis, director of Onda Tenerife, whose line was unstable early in the broadcast. 18. Alonso and Gara both speak with affection for the community aspect of the production, citing spontaneous positive feedback from teachers, strangers, and local residents. 19. Best for listeners interested in community theatre, Canarian religious traditions, or the logistics of staging large outdoor spectacles. 20. Likely to feel slow for listeners unfamiliar with Semana Santa culture or uninterested in behind-the-scenes production detail.

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