31 pages
4 m, 6 w, extras.
Everyone wants this year's Christmas pageant at church done right - that means done their way! As the committee members argue over ideas at a fruitless (and funny!) meeting, they realize the Baby Jesus prop for the nativity can't be located. Finally it is found on top of some old records about the church's very first Christmas pageant, and everyone realizes they had lost sight of keeping Christ in Christmas. Lots of humor with an optional ending for a nativity scene and carol. Performance time: 40 minutes (or longer with optional nativity scene).
36 pages
5 m, 4 w, 2 flexible, 1 child, extras, doubling possible
What do a robbery gone wrong, a case of mistaken identity, and a small church’s Christmas program all have in common? For thief Collin Evans, the opportunity to change his life. Collin and his brother-in-law Tim rob a toy store, and in desperation Collin has to hide the money in a nearby church—ironically in the manger for the upcoming play. The director mistakes Collin for a substitute actor and he must play along. But for this young father, angry since his wife’s unexpected death, a change begins to happen as he talks with the pastor and feels the warmth an...
42 pages
6 m, 6 w, 2 girls, 3 flexible
Here is a touching comedy, a modern-day spin on the story of the Prodigal Son. After years of being over-shadowed by her pretty and over-confident older sister, Peri leaves home, taking the money from her college savings. Like the story from the New Testament, Peri, once quiet and hard-working, lives a life of excess, but finally realizes she wants to return to her family. A homeless man, who has more connection to the family than anyone initially realizes, urges Peri to call home. But will it be the same old story, or will the Stewarts have learned something...
26 pages
4 m, 2 w, 2 m non-speaking.
"If that means I have to charge more, so be it! If that means that the poor have to go hungry, too bad!" Those are the unfeeling words of Jonas, an innkeeper in Bethlehem. His inn is full and business is booming, thanks to Caesar's decree. But Jonas' wife, Abigail, and daughter, Deborah, cannot talk him into being a more compassionate businessman and helping those less fortunate. Jonas argues he should make all the money he can now for their old age since their son, Rueben, who would have helped take care of them, died much too soon. The way Jonas figures it,...
47 pages
8 m, 4 w, optional children's roles, extras as desired.
Just before dawn, Jan. 18, 1981, Chet Bitterman was kidnapped at gunpoint in Bogota, Colombia, and held hostage for 48 days. Rebels demanded all Wycliffe Bible translators leave Colombia or Chet would be killed. Abducted from his wife and two toddlers, the 29-year-old man had recently come to Colombia to live with a remote tribe and to develop for them their own language in written form, then to translate the Scriptures into that language. Chet's is a valiant story of courage and witness under vicious pressure, a story of caring for his kidnappers, concern fo...
26 pages
1 m, 3 w, 1 flexible, 1 boy, extras
Goldie, Frank, and Myrna, three counselors at an emotional helpline, have devised a way to have Christmas Eve off this year. They have engaged Thomas Wellmore, a charming but self-centered Wall Street type, to man the phones. He willingly embraces the opportunity to “balance his karma” and “do something real at Christmas for those less fortunate.” As the evening wears on and no one calls, he becomes increasingly irritated and his true character is revealed. Then, at the stroke of midnight, a cleaning woman enters with her young son, Christopher. Though the ey...