The new Alice Holst Theater at Pacific Union College was inaugurated in March with the world premiere of an unusual play called “Red Books: Our Quest for Ellen White.” Researched, written and produced by students and alums, the work sparked ongoing dialogue among individuals and community.

It began over five years ago when Mei Ann Teo, the resident artist and artistic director of the PUC Dramatic Arts Society and PUC alumna, heard a presentation on the Shakers’ relationship to their founder and the pattern of generations’ reactions to iconic figures. The question was whether this applied to Adventists relationship through the years with Ellen White.

In 2006, Teo teamed with PUC students Eryck Chairez and Zach Dunn to concept a script and cast the play. With Chairez in the director’s seat, the writers and cast members conducted, compiled and re-enacted interviews, and Chairez wrote additional scenes to connect the voices.

As it took shape, however, the play became a look not only the complex interactions with White, but also at how members experience Adventism. “Ellen started off as just the subject in our play; she ended up representing the spiritual struggle of our community,” Chairez explains.

For Teo, it was a journey to the basics of the denomination. “In the process of discovering the history of our opinions on Ellen White,” she recounts, “I was forced to confront the very basis of Adventism. What was it that made Adventists Adventist?”

The goal of the finished play was to weave a wide spectrum of voices, both Adventist and ex-Adventist and varied in age, viewpoint and experience, into a larger picture—not to give an “answer” on White or the church, but to provide a chance to dialogue, to remember, to inform, and maybe even to heal.

“Red Books” was limited by time and venue. “I think the biggest difficulty was deciding what to cut,” says Teo. But the primary goal of dialogue has been fulfilled beyond expectation. On progressiveadventism.com, an online forum coordinated by “Red Books” interviewee and former PUC professor Julius Nam, an extensive dialogue about the church has developed, with other blog sites reflecting similar conversations around the world. Though some question the effectiveness of various elements of the play, all seem to agree that it is part of a much-needed process of dialogue and self-assessment within the church.

The play, with attendance of over 1,000, drew noteworthy guests ranging from East Coast dramatists to conference president Jim Pederson and prolific author George Knight (whose authorship includes books on Adventist heritage and White). Charles White, a great-great-grandchild of Ellen White, flew out from Arizona with Dianne, his wife, to see the play. Charles shared appreciation that this endeavor fulfills the need for promoting awareness and new perspectives on these topics.

“Red Books” is all about taking a fresh look at who Adventists are. Teo asks viewers to describe their Adventism in a sentence. Hers is this: “A place where the search for truth is incessant and where faith will carry you through.”