POPE JOAN
Music: Dennis Martin
Original Book & Lyrics: Dennis Martin & Christoph Jilo
Book for the 2024 revival and additional lyrics: Kevin Schroeder
A woman in disguise. A world ruled by men. A story history tried to erase.
Based on the international bestseller by Donna W. Cross, Pope Joan tells the extraordinary story of Johanna — a courageous woman who defies the limits of her time by disguising herself as a man to enter the Church.
Set in the turmoil of the early Middle Ages, the musical explores one woman’s search for knowledge, love, and faith in a world governed by power and fear.
With sweeping music and intense, theatrical storytelling, Pope Joan is a tale of belief, identity, and the cost of breaking the rules.
The 2024 revival of Pope Joan received the prestigious German Musical Theater Award for Best Revival and Best Sound Design.
Find out more about the show on the website of spotlight musicals
In its 2024 revival, Pope Joan appears in a striking new form — tighter, faster, and emotionally richer. Through Kevin Schroeder’s revised book, the story gains cinematic flow and new depth, sharpening Johanna’s fight for knowledge, faith, and self‑determination. His new song ‘So viel mehr’ gives the heroine greater emotional resonance and forges a powerful connection with the audience.
– Kulturfeder
With new musical numbers, a restructured narrative, and an ensemble brimming with energy, Pope Joan becomes a high-calibre new staging — one that transforms a beloved classic into a deeply moving modern experience.
Who built these walls?
— ANASTASIUS (Paradise on earth)
What turned Rome into this?
The wealth, the splendour —
That it once was praised for?
Was it mercy? Tolerance? No!
It was soldiers. It was slaves.
Why feed the mob?
Bring back the lions!
