After the Bubonic plague wiped out over half the village of Oberammergau in 1634, the community pledged to God that if He spared them, they would perform a Passion of the Christ play every 10 years. Ever since, thousands of villagers have gathered to reenact the life, death, and resurrection of Christ every decade for nearly four centuries. “We said it from the first day,” says Andreas Rödl, Oberammergau’s mayor. “We thought, ‘We must do this.’ For us, for the people here. We must do this because of the history.” With a current cast of 1,400 adults and 400 children, the play normally draws a crowd of about 450,000 attendees over 110 performances and five months. “We grow up with this and for us, it’s so important to do it,” says Rödl. “It’s in our DNA.” — Frederik Mayet, 41, leans on a cross before heading to the stage for his impending crucifixion scene on July 12, 2022 in Oberammergau, Germany. Underneath his loincloth he wears a climbing belt, which will be used to attach him to the cross. Mayet is the first Jesus in his family, and it’s a big deal. “It really changed my life somehow, he said. “It was really important to me, being in the passion play, in such an important role”.