A Joyful Curtain Call. Resurrection Thankfulness.

April 27, 2015

I promise that this is my very last post about our Easter Drama; however, we just got the finished DVD of the production back (which the videographer spent thirty hours compiling from three performances) and we are so excited about it that I just have to do one more post!

Here is a trailer.

If you would like to order the complete DVD, the cost is $10, which includes postage. You can order through our church website.   

1. Enter the amount  2. Put DVD in memo  3. Select one-time for gift frequency  4. Select “no thanks” for Track My Gift    5. Click on Give button, which will take you to PayPal. 

After paying, email your name and address to me at smithellaneous@yahoo.com.  You can also email me if you’d prefer to pay by check.

This is a little footage I caught with my iPhone at dress rehearsal as we were practicing our curtain call. You can’t NOT smile when Jesus comes out from backstage. And if you feel a l bit discomfited by the thought of Jesus dancing, the Bible says that the children loved to be around him so I get the impression he was someone who was not reluctant to show a little joy!

When you hear the cheering going on when he comes out, that was just our cast; not even an audience. That’s how pumped we all were! (Note: the fabulous singer was on loan to us from another church on the island. She is an English teacher at the High School.)

(A couple more notes about the above video: You can see Sarah in the line up of people behind Jesus, wearing the blue dress. And at the very end of the video, you’ll notice some guys on the right side of the screen doing their own little dance. They are students from Dare Challenge, the local faith-based rehab program we support.  It was such a joy to see young men involved in this production who in the very recent past were dealing with drug and alcohol addiction. They had such a great time and just couldn’t seem to stop smiling.)

I also wanted to share with you a few favorite photos. (Unless watermarked, “Kenyon Productions,” all photos are mine.)  

Steve was the smoke, fog, and lighting guru and did an amazing job as you will notice as you scroll through the pictures.

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Sarah worked on the tech team for the whole production except for when she went onstage for her dance. She ran the media for the screens and we also had a lighting operator, a sound guy, and a tech director.  It was the first year I decided not to be in the tech booth which felt sort of strange but it was a nice break, too.  I did all my tech work ahead of time getting the music, sound effects and screens coordinated and then this talented crew took it from there.IMG_3568

Dad and daughter–replete with stage make up.

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My very own husband/Pharisee fella.DSC_0159

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The other Pharisee was a retired pastor; he and Steve had a good time being bad guys together.

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This is the Garden of Gethsemane when the disciples were praying with Jesus and fell asleep.

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Our indefatigable associate/youth pastor, drama writer and drama director, Mary Ann Sherwood, is on the far left. (With hand raised.)  The results she got with a group of non-professional actors was amazing.

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This scene was depicting the verse about turning the other cheek.

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Sarah is on the left in the blue dress. Such a beautiful dance.

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There are few things sweeter than dancing children.DSC_1416

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Steve designed and oversaw the building of this jail. That man’s talents just never end! 

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Pilate delivering his verdict.

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Moments leading up to the crucifixion . . .IMG_1252

The whipping.

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Mary comforting her son.

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Steve said it was very moving (and sobering) to be in the crowd yelling, “Crucify him!”  He caught Jesus’ eye at one point and saw that Jesus was actually crying.

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The soldiers guarding the tomb.

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Blinded by a bright light.

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Resurrection!

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And that joyful curtain call.

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 Thankful for the resurrection!

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27 comments so far.

27 responses to “A Joyful Curtain Call. Resurrection Thankfulness.”

  1. Linda in Pgh says:

    What awesome photos! What an amaIng performance. I am moved beyond words. So much talent, on stage and odf – writing, creating, staging, special effects, acting, dancing, singing, etc. So many blessings – those who gave and those who received! WOW! Thank you for sharing!
    Linda in Pittsburgh

    • Linda in Pgh says:

      Whoops! That should have read “What an AMAZING performance.” Hit that post key a little too fast!

    • Becky says:

      Linda,

      Thanks for your sweet, encouraging words. It was a wonderful team effort. It’s amazing how much a few dozen people can accomplish when they work together!

  2. Marjie says:

    I just got goose bumps just looking at the pictures. Simply beautiful and such a blessing to share with others!

  3. Phyllis says:

    Thankful for the resurrection indeed! I have heard some people say they don’t like seeing these types of plays because they think they are too realistic. I feel like we need to see them to truly appreciate what Jesus went through to save us from our sins. Looks like a great performance. Just wondering, are you able to use any of the sets from one year to the next or does Steve start from scratch each year?

    • Becky says:

      Phyllis,

      He mostly uses stuff from previous years, i.e., Calvary, the tomb, a little hut. But this year the new script called for a jail cell, so that’s what he produced!

  4. Ann Martin says:

    So exciting. Beautiful.

  5. Lesley says:

    I think you all are ready for Broadway! Bravo! Bravo!

  6. Mrs. Pam says:

    beyond joyful…the Resurrection, that’s for sure! love the dancing! I don’t have a dvd player, so I really appreciate seeing all your photos

    • Mrs. Pam, you could probably play the DVD on your computer, if you’re interested in getting one. There should be a little panel labeled DVD. If you have a laptop computer, it would be on the right or left side; if you have desktop computer, it should be on the tower. 🙂
      -Sarah

      • Mrs. Pam says:

        hmmm, Sarah, I see no dvd panel. I’m guessing that the tower is the screen.
        ???? since I can’t hear anything on the computer, I’ll just enjoy your mom’s photos. but, thanks for your reply.

    • Becky says:

      Mrs. Pam,

      Joyful describes it well. And I certainly wish I had the gift of dancing but I DO have the gift of enjoying watching others dance!

  7. Elizabeth Nance / Lib says:

    Wonderful production!!! My church has done something like this s for years! Sarah’s stage make-up was wonderful!!! She’s a beautiful young woman, anyway!!!

  8. Dale Tousley says:

    I second all the wows, wow, that is an incredible production, the thing that brought tears to my eyes was the picture of Mary, trying to comfort her son, I am crying about that right now, sometimes you forget that his Mom was there through all of this,makes it much more personal……beautiful pictures.

    • Becky says:

      Dale,

      Yes, seeing Mary with Jesus is a scene that is so touching. I can’t begin to imagine how her mama heart hurt, watching all of that. She was an amazing lady!

  9. LeeAnne says:

    What a beautiful production!! So well done by EVERYone!! 🙂

  10. Sharyn McDonald says:

    What a beautiful production. I know much work went into bringing this to your church. I got duck bumps (goose pimples?) at the end when “Jesus” came out from the tomb. Great job to everyone who had a part.

    • Becky says:

      Sharyn,

      Yes, I loved the resurrection scene, too. Steve did an amazing job designing the lights and fog to make it so effective.

  11. Liz says:

    I second what Jan said about this amazing production! What a gift to your community!

    • Becky says:

      Liz,

      Yes, we were excited that so many people from the community came. We only run 110 in the church but we had about 650 in attendance!

  12. Jan Reuther says:

    My jaw dropped so far I nearly dislocated my temporomandibular joint! What an amazing production for a church to do!! Broadway has nothin’ on your stars…and they’re all stars!!! Great pictures, as usual, Becky!!!! (I’ll close before I run out of !’s)

    • Becky says:

      Jan,

      That comment made me laugh out loud. Definitely the first time the word, “temporomandibular joint” has shown up in a comment!

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