Performing for the Pope

Craig was invited to perform at the re-enactment of the 13 Stations of the Cross by a fellow rigger. While he currently teaches the Chinese “Sticky Pole” at Aerialise, a company that provides training and classes for aerial theatre, it was his rigging skills that were utilised during the spectacular theatre. Playing a cavalry attendant, Craig assisted with putting Christ onto the Cross and with raising the Cross.   

A non-practicing Catholic, and a gay man, Craig chooses to be spiritual in his own way. “God is the infinite intelligence,” he said, prior to the Friday afternoon.  

He admitted that some would consider it ironic for a gay man to perform at the Catholic event, but he has a high regard for the nuns at the Mary McKillop House, who gave him support when his long-term lover died of AIDS in 1993. “The nuns were so fantastic, they were like mates,” he said. He had asked one of the nuns, “Aren’t you against homosexuality?” to which she replied, “We don’t judge. If someone is in need, we are there for them.” She added: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” 

As he reached the later stages of his illness Craig’s lover became blind. “He just wanted to lie in the sun and smell the geraniums, and the Mary McKillop House allowed him to do that in his final days.”

Many spectators were moved by the stunning re-enactment and one television commentator remarked that “anyone who has been involved in this will be forever changed”. For Craig, it wasn’t so much a changing experience, but he stated afterwards: “It was a bit like an amazing dream being on that stage.”

Had he been tempted at any point to use the exposure for a political statement or to wear an “annoying” T-shirt? Craig’s response was emphatic. “I am a performer, I want to be present and show my face in a positive way.”

Photo: Craig Hull prepares for Stations of the Cross