The Christmas Pageant That Got Away With It
With the holiday season approaching, Pastor Jack Taylor finds himself overcommitted, unable to take his own advice about not doing so much this year. When parishioner Beulah takes the pastor’s sermon of slowing down to heart and quits the children’s Christmas pageant, Pastor Taylor jumps on the opportunity to let Pam, an inexperienced teen who loves TV crime shows, be in charge. The Pastor doesn’t have the time to supervise her, so she and the kids create a new Christmas pageant called “Bethlehem CSI.” Now the long-loved Nativity scene is a crime scene! Pam takes the children to the police station for a rehearsal, accidentally holding a religious activity on government property, landing Pastor Jack in jail. Forced to slow down, Pastor Jack can finally follow his own advice: “Take time this holiday season to find those moments that will make a difference in your life or allow you to make a difference in someone else’s life. When we reach out to each other – that’s what makes Christmas special.” Opportunities to cast multiple children. About an hour.
Productions
Behind The Scenes
SCOTT ICENHOWER TALKS ABOUT
THE CHRISTMAS PAGEANT THAT GOT AWAY WITH IT
1. What inspired you to write this play?
I had written Bethlehem CSI for my Church’s Christmas program a few years ago. It was well received, but I thought it was too quirky to stand alone. Putting it within a more conventional play would be a way to create a story that could explain the children’s play and highlight some of the stress we shouldn’t, but do, experience during the Christmas Holidays.
2. What's your favorite part or line in the play? Why?
“You can’t spell Noel without the word no.” This is one way to sum up the message of the play.
3. Where did the characters come from? Are they based on people you know?
The characters are all fictional. However, there are a few exaggerated characteristics of a couple of people who meant a lot to me when I was growing up in church.
4. What did you try to achieve with this play?
I wanted to write a parable about slowing down at Christmas and reaching out to others as a way of celebrating the Holiday.
5. Do you have anything else you'd like to add?
To me, when Pastor Jack goes to jail it’s an Easter metaphor because he takes on Pam’s punishment. And the act of Pastor Jack limiting his freedom by going to jail and staying to minister to Girby is a metaphor for the incarnation.