The first US pontiff met filmmakers at the Vatican on Saturday 15 November and described cinema as "a workshop of hope”. Hours later in London's Coliseum, the English National Opera's play Dead Man Walking demonstrated exactly what the pontiff meant.
Yet for all the five-star reviews and sold-out houses, critics are missing the deeper story: what makes this work so powerful isn't just the performances or Jake Heggie's gospel-infused score, but how it reveals the fundamental disconnect – and potential reconciliation – between Catholic witness and contemporary secular culture.
