Christian Sues Springer Musical for Blasphemy

A Christian activist in Britain is battling in court to sue the men behind hit musical "Jerry Springer—The Opera" for blasphemy. The play, which depicts Eve as a pole dancer and Jesus as a diaper-wearing deviant, is a "spiteful, willful denigration of Christian belief," his attorney argued.

Named in the action are the play's producer and director of the BBC, which broadcast the musical to 2.4 million viewers two years ago, triggering a record number of complaints and messages of support. A human rights group argued that blasphemy laws are antiquated. They "should be shelved, not used to bring mischievous prosecutions against the arts," said the group's attorney. (More musical theater stories.)