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Based on the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31, Lazarus – the musical, highlights problems of hunger and poverty in the dual contexts of the biblical faith and the modern world. The title character appears variously as a poor man, a poor woman and hungry children to emphasize the breath of the problem. Thus, Lazarus becomes the figure for all those in our world who are poor and hungry, while Dives, the rich man, represents all those who live in affluence, oblivious of the plight of their hungry brothers and sisters.

The action takes place in Dives’ mansion and on the street outside. Dives’ garbage can divides the playing area and functions almost as a character in the play, since it serves both as the symbol of the waste of the affluent and as a source of food for the hungry.

The Troubadour tells the story, interrupting the action from time-to-time to make an observation, to challenge and to provide continuity. He is ever-present, except in the first part of the dream sequence.

The scene opens with Dives’ servants preparing for a great feast. They described in song the sumptuous nature of the banquet, beginning with dishes worthy of an eastern potentate and moving to something which sounds suspiciously like a typical American Thanksgiving dinner. At the end of the song, Dives and his five brothers and their wives are seated around the table. The scene then suddenly shifts to the street outside, where a poor man who lives on the street, often going for days without food, describes his situation, using some of the language of Luke 9:58.

Then we move back to the Dives’ banquet table where he "offers thanks" using language much like the Pharisee’s prayer in Luke 18:9-14 to signal that, while he considers himself a religious man, he also believes he is a self-made man who deserves everything he has. He also reveals something of his attitude toward the poor. As he prays, we hear the secret thoughts of his brothers and their wives as a vocal response. While Dives and his family feast, a poor girl looks for food in his garbage can. Finding nothing, she sings of her need and her vision of a world in which God’s bounties are shared.

When Dives and his family finish eating, they are playful and, to a ragtime beat, each tries to outdo the other by boasting about his/her wealth and lifestyle. They brag that they "wear purple and fine linen, and live sumptuously every day" (Luke 16:19 KJV). When they finish, the servants clear the table and dump the leftovers into the garbage can from which the poor people in the street make their meal. A poor woman, eating her first food in several days, leads the street people in celebrating the wondrous effects food can have on the human body and spirit.

As they finish and leave the scene, night is falling. A group of laborers who work for Dives come by on their way home from work. The Troubadour comments on two truths that Dives has forgotten: the laborer is worthy of his hire (Luke 10:7b) and from the one to whom much is given, much will God require (Luke 12:48b). The homeward-bound laborers sing a prayer for the weary, the homeless and the hungry. Among their number are a woman and her small child who haven’t eaten all day. The child asks for something to eat, and the mother replies that she has nothing left to give but her tears. She promises that tomorrow they’ll find lots of good things to eat and they will never be hungry again. She weeps as her child falls into a fitful sleep on her lap.

When the laborers have gone, the poor man who earlier described his life in song, dies. He is discovered by one of the street women who alerts the others of his death, and together they mourn him. Then, in righteous indignation, they sing of the callous disregard exhibited by the rich man and call for the advent of justice and righteousness. They leave, carrying the body of the dead Lazarus.

We then see Dives in his bedchamber prepared for bed. Looking at himself in the mirror, he congratulates himself on his accomplishments, using the language of the rich fool in Jesus’ story in Luke 12:16-19. He climbs into bed and quickly falls into a dream-laden sleep in which he hears a voice crying to him: "Thou fool! This night will thy soul be required of thee!" Then, one after the other, the poor man who died, the poor woman, and the poor children appear to him, identifying themselves as Lazarus, and reminding him of his callous and uncaring attitude toward them in life. Then they join a multitude on their way to the heavenly feast while Dives finds himself in hell. There he calls to Abraham to let Lazarus come to him with a drink of water, but is told that the barriers he erected in life between himself and the poor now prevent anyone from passing back and forth. Dives pleads then that Lazarus be sent back to life to warn his five brothers, but is told that since they have not listened to Moses and the prophets, they wouldn’t be convinced by someone rising from the dead (Luke 16:22-31). Dives, writhing in agony, declares that all are doomed.

Though the story in Luke 16 ends with Dives doomed to hell for eternity, the Troubadour in our story suggests we see what might happen if Dives were indeed given another chance. Dives’ dream then shifts to a sun-lit Galilean hillside where some of Jesus’ disciples are looking for a boy who is reputed to have five loaves and two fishes, which Jesus has promised will feed the hungry multitude to whom he has been preaching (John 6:6-13). The disciples spot Dives and think he is the boy they are seeking. He insists that he cannot be the one they seek, since he is a full-grown man. When they insist he is indeed the boy, he realizes that maybe he is the boy they seek after all (Luke 18:17). He seizes his chance for redemption as well, and he vows to give all he has to feed the poor and hungry (Luke 12:33, 14:33, 18.22).

Dives awakes and calls his brothers and their wives. He warns them that they must find a way to share their wealth with a hungry world. Then he summons the street people and asks them to join together with him and his family in finding ways to put things right. He tells them all that God has given him in a vision, and he describes in song how, when he shared what he had, it was multiplied, and five thousand people ate and were satisfied (Luke 9:17 RSV). He also tells them about the heavenly feast and suggests that, through sharing, such a vision can become a reality on the earth. Then he, his family and the street people mingle together in fellowship and call upon the audience to respond as well. After members of the audience have responded, the entire company, as well as the audience learn from the Troubadour that, if they have the faith of a grain of mustard seed, nothing is impossible (Matthew 17:19-20, John 14:12) - not even the elimination of hunger from the face of the earth.