FOSTER FATHER is a musical comedy/drama about the biblical Joseph, husband of Mary.

 

"Foster Father" takes Joseph and Mary from their betrothal through Joseph's death. Along the way the audience sees what it was like for a man in a male-dominated society to learn that his betrothed had become pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Other characters include Jesus as a boy and young man, the Angel Gabriel, Elisabeth, the prophets Simeon and Anna, and an angry mob of Zealots.

 

Joseph aspires to a peaceful life and wants to raise Jesus as a normal child who will grow up to master carpentry, the family business. Joseph's priorities for Jesus' life don't quite make the cut, however, and Joseph is deeply hurt when Jesus leaves home to begin his ministry. However, before Joseph's death, Jesus shows him what a good "papa" he has been after all.