Raise the Standard and Put Down the Scripts

I was in a small church one morning where I noticed they had a drama on the morning's worship schedule. Being that part of my living comes from the world of Christian drama, I'm always excited to see it used in worship. What didn't excite me was the way it was presented.

The actors made their way onto a cluttered stage full of guitars, amps, and microphones. One actor sat at a table, where they tilted a microphone down to their face and spread a script out before them. The other actor held a microphone in one hand and a script in the other.

Both actors were capable speakers, and the fact that both were willing to get up and even attempt putting in a character in front of the tiny congregation (most of whom no doubt knew them by name) was commendable. That said, their efforts were sadly lacking. I'm sure both of these people have a busy schedule. We all do. But would it really be too much to ask them to expend a little effort and learn two pages of dialogue?

Not every church has the talent or resources of the megachurches known for their stellar Sunday morning dramas. But it seems to me we're cheating God and ourselves by not giving as much effort as we can. The point of drama is to create not just an aural, but a visual memory in the audience. When your actors are reading from a script and not interacting face to face, it doesn't leave as strong an impression.

There also seems to be a great, irrational fear pervasive in churches about memorizing lines. I can't explain it. I've never seen any rational explanation for it. But it is EVERYwhere. And it's one of the chief reasons why human videos and dowel rod "skits" have become such a highly regarded form of drama in the church.

One solution would be to put both actors behind stands and microphones and deliver the drama reader's theater style. It wouldn't work for every script, but if you had strong speakers who can create characters with their voices, they would still be giving a much stronger effort than actors with a script in one hand and a microphone in the other.

The best solution, I think, is to demand a little more from your actors. Demand and expect them to not only memorize their lines, but put some character and emotion into them.

"But John, you don't know how hard it is to find actors for Sunday morning." Oh do I ever. I've been there. Matter of fact I've been the guy making phone calls and driving from work place to work place asking every actor I know if they could possibly take a two day road trip and memorize a play the following morning. It's hard to find talent, much less talent that will follow through on commitment.

But let's step away from the stage a moment. If you were looking for volunteers to run the church nursery, would you be content with someone who takes the newborn baby from Mom, sets her on the floor, and ignores her the rest of the hour? Or what if your area of ministry was in the kitchen? Would you invite someone back who served the fried chicken uncooked? They showed up on time. They put the chicken on the plates. So what if they failed to cook it?

If you're going to be in a play on Sunday morning, take some time to memorize your lines. Once that's done, take the time to really examine your character. Who are they? What do they want? Ask questions with the director and your fellow actors. Take a few extra minutes early in the week (not fifteen the morning of) and commit to presenting the best play possible.

A heart that is willing to serve is a beautiful thing. But there's more to presenting drama than just showing up and reading a script. There's a standard in every other aspect of ministy we expect people to meet. What standard do you hold in your drama ministry?

Comments

[ANTHONY]

AMEN, Thank you I have been involved with drama companies fromthe time i gave my life to Christ and for me the one thing that hurts the most is when the body of Christ uses drama to share Christ and it is not done in excellence. lines unknown actor playing a part that doesnt fit. I have been in crowds where this was done and there was some one who did not know Christ and they walked away talking about how bad that was done.