In the fall of 2024, the Christendom Players gave the first performance of Dr. Daniel McInerny’s acclaimed play The Actor. Based on the life of Pope St. John Paul II, the play vividly portrays Karol Wojtyła’s journey from actor and artist to priest. This is the inside story of how the play came to be — and the powerful impact it had not only on audiences but also on the cast and crew who brought this profound story to life.
“How would a man so passionate for art and literature, drama and acting—through the crucible of war and Nazi occupation—discover a vocation to the priesthood?”
This burning question about Pope St. John Paul II lingered in the mind of Christendom professor Dr. Daniel McInerny for years. It ultimately became the inspiration for his play The Actor, an exploration of Karol Wojtyła’s early life and his journey from the stage to the altar.
Many know Pope St. John Paul II as “The People’s Pope,” the Holy Father who urged young people to “be not afraid.” His legacy is monumental: he canonized 51 saints, announced 1,338 blesseds, wrote 14 encyclicals, and penned Theology of the Body, a work that transformed contemporary Catholic thought on human love and sexuality. He was present at numerous World Youth Days, designated St. Thérèse of Lisieux a Doctor of the Church, and shepherded the Church from 1978 until his death in 2005.
But before he became a global spiritual leader, Karol Wojtyła was a young man in war-torn Poland, wrestling with the profound questions of faith, culture, and calling. The Actor brings this lesser-known period of his life to the stage, revealing how his love for the arts shaped his path to the priesthood.
This story comes from the latest issue of Instaurare Magazine, the official magazine of Christendom College. Read more from Instaurare here!
The play was first presented in part at Christendom’s Summer Consortium, accompanied by a director’s commentary for an intimate audience. In November 2024, The Actor received its full performance in Christendom College’s Old Chapel Hall, brought to life by the Christendom Players. For cast, crew, and audience alike, the production deepened their appreciation for Pope St. John Paul II’s sacrifices and his mission to restore beauty, culture, and faith in a broken society.
Art as a Path to the Divine
“Besides bringing this lesser-known period of St. John Paul II’s life to the attention of audiences,” explains McInerny, “my goal in writing The Actor was to explore the way in which the young Karol Wojtyła discovered his vocation. While initially drawn to a life on the stage, in devotion to the classics of Polish dramatic literature, Wojtyła found that he was called to be a different sort of ‘actor’ on a different sort of ‘stage’ while serving God as a priest. So, the question that drove the writing of the play was: how does God transform our loves, using one love to open us up to a deeper calling? More specifically: how is the art of drama a prefiguring of the drama of God’s love for us?”
Dr. Daniel McInerny provided a director’s commentary on his play for guests at Summer Consortium 2024.
McInerny highlights a pivotal moment in the play when young Karol, known to his friends as “Lolek,” wrestles with his passion for acting. As part of an underground “resistance theater,” he and his fellow actors risk their lives to perform Polish plays in secret, preserving their nation’s cultural heritage under Nazi rule.
Disheartened by the small audience at one performance, Lolek confesses to his friend Irena:
“I just want everyone to hear my voice. Not because it’s my voice, but because it’s theirs, really. [While we were on stage] …we were giving voice to every Pole who is oppressed, giving them a word of hope. That if they endure, their redemption will come.” (Act 2, Scene 3)
Later, his mentor, Jan Tyranowski, sees in Lolek a deeper calling. He tells him:
“God is the Artist! And like any artist, He wants to make a masterpiece. You, Karol, have been invited to play a role in His drama and to play it with excellence—indeed, unto sanctity.” (Act 2, Scene 5)
The Christendom Players presented an emotional and compelling depiction of McInerny’s play.
Through Tyranowski’s guidance, Lolek begins to see that his love for drama was never an end in itself—it was preparing him for a higher vocation. As McInerny explains, “The priest is the actor, and the priest, through very special words, makes the highest reality truly present, [our Lord’s] body, blood, soul, and divinity.”
A Performance That Inspired Transformation
For those involved in the production, The Actor was more than just a play—it was a transformative experience.
Patrick Ohotnicky ’25, who played Lolek, described the immense responsibility he felt in bringing the young saint to life.
“When I was cast to play him in the fall play,” he says, “it was as if I was given the mission to bring him, as the teenager that he was, to my fellow students. As I read through it, I realized the incredible gift and task that had been given me. I made it my mission to portray Lolek not just as a young man on his way to sainthood, but as a young man just like us who was showing us the way to sainthood, inviting us to follow in his footsteps.”
Patrick Ohotnicky ’25 as “Lolek” and Padraic Deighan ’26 as his friend “Juliusz.”
Theresa Byers ’25, who portrayed Irena Sobol, reflected on how the play made Pope St. John Paul II’s life more relatable:
“I think it’s inspiring to see someone young and talented give up what they thought they wanted for God. Often, we think about saints and their lives, and they seem far away and not relatable. But being able to see John Paul II’s life and his struggles in this way makes him a little more real. I think he is a really great example of bringing Christ to everything you do. Lolek brought his Faith to everything and that’s why he was already so prepared to bring his whole self to God when he became a priest and later pope.”
Freshman Ignatius Birdsall ’28 played the role of Cardinal Wojtyła later in his life.
Jillian Vincent ’27, who played Stephanie Nowak, expressed her excitement:
“It felt like we were making history. The most impactful part of the story to me was seeing how John Paul II was once a typical young man, with friends and interests like any other young man, and yet his faith was so rich,” says Vincent. “It was inspirational to see how he integrated his life as a student and an actor, aspiring to great fame, with his deep love of God and his desire to glorify Him. The way he used his God-given talents is incredible. Young people today can learn a lot from John Paul II not only from what he taught but also—very importantly—from the way he lived as a young man himself.”
For Aron Forthofer ’25, who played both Lolek in the summer reading and Brother Albert Chmielowski in the fall performance, the experience was deeply personal:
“Being in this play helped me remember that John Paul II was also a college student once upon a time,” says Forthofer. “He had his vocational struggles, family problems, and friendships like young people have these days. And if he can have a life like that portrayed on stage in The Actor, it is possible for any one of us college students to become a great saint like him.”
Ohotnicky shared how playing Lolek helped him process his own suffering. During rehearsals, his mother was battling brain cancer. She was too ill to attend the performance, and she passed away a few months later.
“I was able to, in a sense, lean upon Lolek and his suffering to help comfort and support me and my family. Bringing Lolek to life allowed me to come closer to God, and it is my prayer and hope that it was as inspiring for everyone who watched it as it was for myself and the rest of the cast. When we encounter the saints not just as the mighty heroes of God but as regular people who become the heroes, it can and should inspire us on our own path to holiness, following in their footsteps.”
A Call to Holiness
The life and teachings of Pope St. John Paul II remain profoundly relevant today. Just as God called young Lolek through his passion for the arts, He calls each of us through the desires He has placed in our hearts.
As seekers draw closer to the One who knows their deepest dreams, it is good to remember these words from Pope St. John Paul II’s Crossing the Threshold of Hope:
“In prayer, then, the true protagonist is God.”
Pope St. John Paul II’s story reminds us that every love, every talent, and every challenge is part of the great drama of salvation. The question is: Will we play our role with excellence?
Written by Julie Wells.
Read more from Instaurare Magazine here.