How To Start A Church or Christian School Theater Ministry

By William Kritlow

Just so you know my bias, I’m a firm believer in Christian Theater Ministries. There’s nothing like a live theater experience to capture the attention, the imagination, the minds, and the hearts of the audience. From minutes to hours, an audience can be transported wherever you want them to go - from their own living rooms to the foot of the cross - and every step along the way, they become part of both story and message. There’s no better way to excite and nurture God’s people than a dramatic, theatrical event.
Thankfully, these events don’t have to be EVENTS! They can be as simple as flipping a light switch, or as complex as parting the Red Sea, and they usually lie somewhere in between. They are, literally, whatever you have the time, energy and resources to produce - and most of us have very little of any of those. But whatever the input, the output can make a huge impact for our savior and His people.
This explores the step by step process of getting a theater ministry going at your church or Christian school. It looks at where such a ministry has its greatest impact, and the various shapes it can take - from something simple that assists a pastor delivering his message, to an elaborate full length play or musical whose aim is to evangelize a community. Wherever God is leading your creative heart, this book will get you there.

• Language: English
• Publisher: William Kritlow
• Release date: Jan 7, 2012
• ISBN: 9781452486062

William Kritlow

Indiana born, California raised, a Christian at 9, a returning prodigal at 37, I published my first books with Thomas Nelson Publishing Company when I was 50 and now have 7 novels in print, and a number of non-fiction books, some with, some without my name on them. I'm currently pioneering a Theater Arts Program for adults and children in Fountain Valley, CA. God is working faithfully in His children's lives. My passion is to explore His love and grace.

Book preview

How to Start a Church or Christian School Theater Ministry

by William Kritlow

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2012 William Kritlow

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Further permissions: the plays presented in the Appendix are for reading as part of this book. If you want to perform any of them, either email me for permission or purchase the ebook in which the play is published and take advantage of the permission afforded by the purchase. Additional performances require additional permission. For that permission, or to ask a question, make a comment or suggestion, or just to say, Hi. [e-mail]

Cover art by Sally Truong - visit her website - http://www.inkit-printing.com

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Why start a Church or Christian School Theater Ministry

Chapter 2 - There’s only one reason -

Chapter 3 - Why Has God Brought It All Together?

Chapter 4 - Now I Are One - Or - What Exactly Is a Theater Ministry

Chapter 5 - Okay, How Do You Use A Theater Ministry?

Chapter 6 - Theatrical Flavors - The Largely Technical

Chapter 7 - The Art of the Short Play

Chapter 8 - The Art of the Instructional Christian One Act

Chapter 9 - The Art of the Full Length Christian Play

Chapter 10 - The Imagination Workshop

Chapter 11 - Method Acting - The Christian Version

Chapter 12 - Some Final Thoughts

Appendix - Sample Plays

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Chapter 1 - Why start a Church or Christian School Theater Ministry

About 15 years ago I found myself in a Christmas theater production at Church. I’d done some work on the stage at a teenager, but none since, and here I was in my 50s. I’d just published my first novel and fancied myself a budding literary giant, one who could write anything - novels were just the first conquest. Plays would be my next. Why plays? Because this Christmas effort our church was doing needed some major script doctoring.

So I doctored it. And the play turned out much better for it. One reason was that my part was much larger and far more sympathetic and, as the young shepherd boy led me to Christ, much wiser. I found I loved the stage and I loved writing for it. And so I acted and wrote, and enlisted others to act with me. Fortunately, the church leadership wanted to use us, so over the years, a church theater ministry was developed.

The church also had a Middle, and Jr. High School as a ministry, 250 - 300 kids from K - 8, on campus everyday, kids there to learn the 3 Rs, and all the other letters the state required. And, unlike the state run institution, they also learned about Jesus. Over time, a Christ centered arts ministry, which included a strong dose of theater, was planted, watered and bloomed.

Neither of these ministries threatened Broadway. But they did help a lot of kids and adult, God’s children in His Kingdom, learn about Him, learn about how He works with His people, and develop stage savvy skills they could use to His praise and glory as their particular life journeys progressed.

Just so you know my bias, I’m a firm believer in Christian Theater Ministries. There’s nothing like a live theater experience to capture the attention, the imagination, the minds, and the hearts of the audience. From minutes to hours, an audience can be transported wherever you want them to go - from their own living rooms to the foot of the cross - and every step along the way, they become part of both story and message. There’s no better way to excite and nurture God’s people than a dramatic, theatrical event.

Thankfully, these events don’t have to be EVENTS! They can be as simple as flipping a light switch, or as complex as parting the Red Sea, and they usually lie somewhere inbetween. They are, literally, whatever you have the time, energy and resources to produce - and most of us have very little of any of those. But whatever the input, the output can make a huge impact for our savior and His people.

Now, there are probably more of you out there who have such ministries than anyone, but God, will ever know. My head’s bowed for you and I’d love to hear from you. But there are also a whole slew of places in the Kingdom that don’t have these ministries and would be blessed by them. If only someone would take up the torch and run with it! Nudge, nudge, wink, wink!

That’s why this book.

Okay, what about this book? First, it’s not the definitive work on this subject. Not even close. In fact, even if I could write such a tomb, I wouldn’t. This book is a nudge in the theater ministry direction. It’s an encouragement. That’s all. You and The Lord will go the rest of the way; because you and the Lord have all the creativity that’s needed, and all the energy and insight. He also has all the love and grace to see the ministry through. I hope what I’ve included here is enough to get you started.

Here’s what I mean.

I want to point you in the right direction - to God. This is His field we’re laboring in, His tools, His laborers, His seed, His crops. His ministry. Our job is to become a part of it - take the gifts He’s given us, plug ourselves into the plan He’s made for us, and begin to do the things He’s prepared in advance for us to do.

Next I want you to clearly see that there are others of us out here - others of us walking by faith down this theatrical road. And there’s a place where like minded folk can share their questions, concerns, and ideas. My email is: [e-mail]. Use it. I would love to put a support and encouragement group together. Let’s say right here that anyone who emails me about this, unless they request otherwise, will be a member.

Then I want to give you some ideas to start with and some experiences that might add up to guidance.

One of the great things about creativity, it’s out there in abundance. God identifies Himself in the 5th word of the Bible as a Creative God. And just one glimpse at the heavens and the earth confirms it. That same fire of creativity blazes in all of us - to one degree or another. For those of you where that fire burns hot, I hope to provide some ideas that will help get you started - or confirm the path you're on. The idea is to build on them - or discard them altogether and build on your own foundation - but the hope is that turning these pages will at least stir the blood. Christians with their blood stirred are powerful things.

My Braveheart speech - if God’s planted within you the idea of a theater ministry, or if He’s given you the desire, as He’s given me, to act, write your brains out, or do something else stage related, then the time’s come. If you’re in church leadership and someone in your church, or among your Christian friends, is pestering you, or just driving you nuts talking about something like this over and over and over again, as I did to my pastor, then the time’s come. If you just downloaded this book because you wanted some excitement, then in the act of getting a life, the time’s come. I never claimed I was good at Braveheart speeches, but God is very good at seeing you through the entire Theater Ministry process. Call on Him. Read this and other books. And as you do both, lite your furnace, and create some dramatic heat!

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Chapter 2 - There’s only one reason -

Okay, your dramatic thermostat is rising, but even so, there’s only one reason to actually take that first step and start a Church or School Theater Ministry: God wants you to.

And how do you know He wants you to?

Because somewhere handy are the desire, the vision, the venue, and the talent. If He’s given you all four of those - not three, or two, or more likely, just one - but all four, then God’s telling you the time has come to start a theater ministry. Let’s take a sec and look at each of those elements.

The Desire: theater ministries aren’t for the faint of heart. They’re a lot of work. Things get tense. Quick thinking is at times too slow. Failures always preceed success. And success immediately becomes What’s next? And through it all, God, the loving potter, is embracing and comforting and, at times, digging his clay-forming thumbs into all involved. All the sins show themselves including anger, envy, and impatience. Eventually a worm or two pops out of every fruit of the spirit in the room, yours included. This is where desire comes in. You, or someone else in the organization, has to possess enough desire, the "want it in the gut (or heart)" kind of desire to keep going and growing through the entire double-edged sword experience. Actually, these are the guys or gals you’ll spot first. They’re the ones pestering you to make something happen. Or, perhaps, you keep pestering yourself. If there’s a show to put on, they’re the ones who’ll do it.

A Vision is sometimes hard to verbalize, yet it’s vital someone in the room