Christmas

46 pages

7 m, 5 w, 11 teen girls, 3 teen boys.

The Davies’ house is a picture of confusion and complications this Christmas Day with the arrival of various extended family members and guests. No one can find Uncle John, there’s body glitter all over Kelly’s room, Sandy and her daughters have been doing something with feathers in the kitchen, and nobody knows what Nana Jane might do this year! But then a stranger appears who might be Sandy’s new boyfriend, Phil’s old friend from college, or (if we believe Grandpa) the mysterious Uncle Don from the Amazon. The stranger says nothing, and yet his soft smile i...

41 pages

Flexible cast

This collection will delight all church children's leaders. The 22 recitations and choral readings are perfect for preschoolers and elementary school children. Older youngsters will enjoy performing the three plays: "Christmas Gifts From Jesus," "Channel J-O-Y," and "The Fourth King." Because of the flexibility of this book, any number of children can be involved. It's great for any size church - a must for this Christmas.

19 pages

8 m, 6 w, narrator.

In Part I a modern wife, serene in her happiness, scoffs lightly as her old-fashioned mother tells the children the Biblical story of Christmas, acted out in pantomime with a narrator in Part II. In Part III the modern wife finds, in near tragedy, that the scarlet ribbon of Christmas, which runs through the Bible, still binds the past and the future together in faith and hope. A presentation that offers easy rehearsal scheduling, and yet highlights the Christmas spirit. Performance time: 90 minutes.

25 pages

3 m, 4 w.

Janie wants a real old-fashioned Christmas, one that brings back the spirit of the old days, but her boyfriend is too busy working at the mission to help her. As hard as she tries, everything goes wrong - the popcorn balls are too sticky, the homemade candles collapse, and the live Christmas tree falls over. Janie thinks Christmas is ruined, but it's only the display that's failed. With the help of her family and boyfriend, Janie rediscovers that the Christmas spirit is in each of us, giving and sharing all year long. Performance time: 30 minutes.

12 pages

Large flexible cast

Preschoolers and children in lower grades will enjoy performing in this gentle and delightful Christmas pageant. Like many mothers of new babies, Mary is having a difficult time getting Baby Jesus to sleep. The wise men, shepherds, angels, lions, sheep, and mice sing their best lullabies, but all in vain. At last, one small, timid, striped kitten sings the Holy Child to sleep. Older children can handle the few speaking roles while any number of younger performers can participate as the animals. Easy costuming and staging and all the songs are traditional, wel...

25 pages

4 m, 4 w, extras.

It is a very much depressed Wallis family on Christmas eve that meets to discuss their problems. They hardly have enough money for wood for the fire, Emma may lose her job, Carol's boyfriend is hurt and may die, and brother Joe is in prison. They are all waiting for Judge Davis to bring over a tin box their grandfather left them which, according to his will, cannot be opened until tonight. They hope it is filled with money. As they wait, a stranger enters seeking warmth and they receive him as a friend. When the box is opened and found empty, they discover th...

12 pages

6 m, 3 w, 6 flex, extras.

Bring the biggest news story ever to your congregation with special, on-the-spot reports from the hills of Bethlehem. Reporters interview villagers on the scene including shepherds who tell how the singing of angels led them to a stable where a baby has just been born. Soon the reporters interview wise men and even the baby's parents themselves. As one reporter closes the newscast he wonders what the world will one day make of the events of this night.

28 pages

Large flexible cast, doubling possible.

It's Christmas and everyone is happy. Everyone, that is, except Travis, who tried to play a little joke on the Pastor's wife and now only has sticks and stones to look forward to. His grief is intensified by Felicity whose perfect record this past year has earned her all that she wants for Christmas - and she wants 364 gifts, one for each day of her goodness. After Felicity blows her contract and loses everything, they both learn that there is still one gift they can receive for Christmas...one that no one can ever be good enough to earn (Isaiah 64:6), but yo...

20 pages

7 m, 5 w, 2 teen girls, 2 boys, extras as angels.

Leah, a teenager, has never spoken a word in her life, and her mother, an old servant woman at an inn, feels guilty and worried about the future. But that all changes when Baby Jesus is born at the inn's stable. As shepherds come to worship Him, another miracle occurs and Leah speaks for the first time, to sing a lullaby. A beautiful, dramatic story. Performance time: 30 minutes.

33 pages

1 m, 2 w

This play deals with the heartache and the trauma of being old, being alone in the world and forgotten. Mrs. Delmonico, a former actress, lives in a tenement building in New York. She exists mostly in her imagination and takes her torment out on her neighbor, Mrs. Quinn. They are unable to get along in any way until this Christmas Eve when Mr. Gartch, one of the roomers whom they have never met, happens upon the scene. He becomes their catalyst - motivating them to look at things differently. Because of his being so positive and hopeful, and because he is ano...

36 pages

6 m, 4 w, 1 child

Three days before Christmas, a snowstorm has closed the airport and stranded travelers on their way home for the holidays. Behind each face is a story: the young man returning to make amends for a past left behind 15 years earlier; the young woman who feels she's a failure, running home to Daddy after her marriage falls apart; and the man who's too proud to admit he was wrong and restore a severed relationship with his brother. Also there's the young wife who's more comfortable spending Christmas in an airport with strangers than at home without her husband a...

30 pages

2 m, 5 w, 3 children.

Grandma likes to follow tradition at Christmas and that means having the whole family over at her house for presents, turkey, and carols around her organ. So when unexpected visitors become stranded at her home and the organ won't play a note, Grandma thinks the holiday is ruined. But the Christ Child brought the first Christmas to all of us, and on this night, three other young children bring it back to Grandma's. Performance time: 30 minutes.

24 pages

Large, flexible cast, approx. 11 m, 9 w, and any number of children.

This is one Christmas Eve you'll want to spend out of town - with the friendly folks of Nazareth, Texas. Modern day scenes with the flavor and poignancy of "Steel Magnolias" bring the Christmas story to life. From the Chic 'N Sassy beauty shop where Rhonda Gae learns she is pregnant, to the Starlight Motel where Leona helps a poor young couple find refuge, to a lonely farmhouse where the lost Jubilee Trio singers deliver gifts to an infant, you'll see the Christmas story unfold in a very special way. Warm, neighborly characters, a Christmas Spirit who serves ...

18 pages

flexible cast

Tis' the season to be...busy! Here's a collection of five skits, ranging in length from five to seven minutes, that challenge Christians to take time throughout the Christmas holiday season to celebrate Jesus. These skits highlight the truth that even when circumstances are less than ideal, Christians always have something to celebrate. The skits can be performed independently or as a weekly series leading up to Christmas. With contemporary settings, they're easy to stage and produce.

29 pages

3 m, 3 w, 1 teen girl, 1 boy, 1 girl, and pageant cast of 14

Michael is too busy and unconcerned to have any time for God. His twins, Chris and Camille, realize his need for God and are trying to persuade their father to go to the church Christmas program with them, but Michael has flatly refused to go. However, God is at work in Michael's life although he does not realize it. With the help of Uncle Matt, a faulty furnace, and his wife, Kathryn, the program is brought to him. Finally, Michael understands his own need for God. Performance time: About 50 minutes.