Jamaican acting legend Oliver Samuels and CBS television star Zay Harding will headline the cast of Jamaican playwright Easton Lee’s classic religious epic The Rope and The Cross, returning to the New York stage for a Gala Easter Sunday performance on April 5.
The staged reading concert will take place at The Jamaica Performing Arts Center (JPAC) in Jamaica, Queens, at 7 p.m., preceded by a complimentary Caribbean Cuisine Easter Reception courtesy of The Door Restaurant at 5:30 p.m. Broadway World award winner David Heron serves as producer and director of the one-night-only event, presented through special arrangement with the estate of the late playwright Lee.
Set in rural Jamaica and ancient Jerusalem, The Rope and The Cross reimagines Christ’s passion by humanizing Jesus and Judas as modern-day Jamaican men—young, angry, and determined to overturn the status quo for a more just society. When authorities intervene with deceptive tactics, the two rebels tragically learn the lengths autocracy will go to prevent change.
Samuels, a three-time Actor Boy Award winner, will play The Shepherd Narrator, guiding audiences through the story across past and present. He recently completed the American premiere tour of his production Di Prodigal Pickney and has appeared in over sixty theatrical productions and films including The Mighty Quinn with Denzel Washington and Great Moments in Aviation with Vanessa Redgrave.
Harding appears as the High Priest Annas, whose manipulative interactions with Jesus and Judas drive the events that lead to the cross. His acting credits include FX’s American Horror Story, ABC’s Mistresses, and CBS’s Hawaii Five-O. He currently hosts the second season of The Visioneers With Zay Harding on CBS, which achieved record-breaking 2025 ratings, and has appeared onstage in productions including Camelot at The American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.).
Heron describes the production as part of his ongoing effort to revive and introduce Caribbean plays to wider audiences. “Two years ago, we presented the hugely well-received American premiere of the late Alwin Bully’s McBee, a Caribbean re-telling of Macbeth, at JPAC,” he said. “Inspired by that success, we are back with The Rope and The Cross, a play that seems as timeless and timely as when it was first performed in Jamaica in 1979. Its playwright Easton Lee, like Alwin Bully, is no longer with us. But I believe we have a responsibility to honor their memory by consistently preserving and presenting the work. It is the only way to honor our legacy of Caribbean theatre excellence.”
Heron praised Lee’s play as “one of the finest Jamaican masterpieces ever written,” noting its reflection of Jamaica’s political and societal evolution during the late 1970s. “Easton captured the rebellious spirit of Jamaica at that moment,” he said. “He draws a clear parallel with what Jesus and Judas were trying to achieve in Israel against the authorities in Judea and imperialist Rome. It strikes a perfect balance between the ancient biblical and modern political, without losing any of the pathos of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice.”
Heron also expressed excitement about Samuels and Harding sharing the stage for the first time. “Oliver and Zay are brilliant actors playing roles unlike anything they have done before. Oliver, the undisputed Caribbean King of Comedy, will take audiences to emotional places rarely seen in his performances, and together with a stellar cast including Zay, they will create an experience to remember.”
Additional casting will be announced soon. The production is presented in association with The Jamaica Tourist Board, Mesidor PLLC, Results Promo and Marketing, The Door Restaurant, and IMC Media. Tickets go on sale online Tuesday, February 10, at theropeandthecross.eventbrite.com, with Early Easter Special discounts available until February 24. Box office inquiries: 646-533-7021.
