Fans of The Big Bang Theory will have to wait until the fall for new episodes. Fans of Jim Parsons can see him live on stage for the next 13 weeks. Parsons plays the almighty in a new play, An Act of God , that opens Thursday night on Broadway.
The show is an adaptation of a book, The Last Testament: A Memoir By God , penned by comedy writer David Javerbaum. He also acts as “God’s” Twitter scribe at TheTweetOfGod .
“‘Lord, can I have a pony?’ Sure. Just as soon as I get a prayer from a pony asking for a little girl with no clue how to take care of it.”
— God (@TheTweetOfGod) May 27, 2015
An Act of God opened for previews on May 7 to extremely large crowds. Parsons’ Big Bang Theory co-star Mayim Bialik was in attendance and expressed her gushing approval of his performance.
Javerbaum told Macleans that Parsons was the perfect fit for the role of God.
“He is really incredible, in his comic chops, in the way he tells the story.”
The experienced Broadway actor — Parsons also appeared in Harvey and The Normal Heart during breaks from The Big Bang Theory — is tasked with fundamentally carrying the production. An Act of God is 90-minutes long with no intermission and is largely confined to Parsons alone onstage.
Patricia Treble, writing in Macleans , says Jim can pull it off.
“The four-time Emmy-winning actor’s impishly affable persona and soft Texas drawl are the perfect contrasts for a deity whose most famous depiction is as an austere old man on the Sistine Chapel.”
Entertainment Tonight pulled some choice lines from the play that take aim at celebrities.
“How about Bruce Jenner by the way? The first Kardashian woman I can actually tolerate .”
“Kanye, next time you win a GRAMMY and you thank me for your ‘God-given talents,’ they’re gonna get God-taken, understand?”
“I saw Justin Bieber hit puberty, then puberty hit back and beat the crap out of him.”
In a clip from the play, “God” calls celebrities his “chosen people.” Have a look at the video below.
In another clip, he asks athletes to refrain from thanking him for victories. An Act of God hits the stage about one month after eligibility for contention for the 2015 Tony Awards. Parsons will be a presenter on the Tony Awards June 7, during a show hosted by Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming.
The Big Bang Theory will return for season 9 in a couple of months on CBS, when fans will learn what becomes of Parsons’ Sheldon Cooper and Bialik’s Amy Farrah Fowler.
[Jim Parsons Photo By Brad Barket / Getty Images Entertainment]