A carcass farce of most pope-y proportions.
In the year 897 A.D., Pope Stephen VII dug up the rotting corpse of his predecessor, Pope Formosus, and placed it on trial in front of the entire Roman Clergy, Senate, and Aristocracy. After screaming at it for hours, Stephen had the body dismembered, disrobed, and thrown in the Tiber River. Why would he do this? Your guess is as good as ours. But, here’s our guess. Brought to life with a sensuous mix of pope-punk, Catholic pop, and inarguably melodic ecclesiastical mandible-flappings, we invite YOU to the trial of the 9th century.
Running time: 1 hour 50 minutes

  The 2017 New York Musical Festival, which runs July 10 through August 6, will bring audiences four full weeks of new musicals, concerts, readings, and panel discussions. We spoke with Robbie Florian about his musical The Cadaver Synod. Tell us about your show! Our show tells the true story of Pope Stephen VII, who, in the year 897 A.D., dug up the corpse of his predecessor, Pope Formosus, and put the rotting body on trial in front of the entire Roman clergy, senate, and aristocracy.  Literally dressed it up in its old Pope clothes, propped it up on a chair, and screamed accusations at the thing for hours while a whole host of onlookers nodded along.  The only person assigned to defend the dead body was a teenage deacon, a sputtering, naive academic facing a righteous onslaught from the most holy and famous man on Earth. Ultimately, Stephen had the corpse declared guilty of… crimes, and the body was dismembered, disrobed, and thrown in the Tiber River. This really happened. We have recreated the trial, and the events preceding and following it, with a mixture of pope-punk, Catholic pop, doo-wop, Gregorian chant, R&B (reverends & bishops), gospel, and much much more. …Read more