Think about the last time you were emotionally moved. Think about the last time you literally laughed out loud. Chances are that it was during a movie, TV show, or maybe a theatre experience. This is the power of drama. It elicits emotion. It stays with you. Whether it’s funny or serious, drama reaches deep within, past the mind, to the heart and the soul. It speaks equally to adults and kids alike. And children’s ministries can employ drama to change the way kids think and feel about Jesus.
As I talk to children’s ministers, the question often comes up: “How do I start doing drama in my ministry?” My reaction is always the same: “Slowly.” Rushing into drama quickly and unprepared can be a big mistake producing big frustrations.
Drama can quickly become overwhelming. So keep the enthusiasm, but build your drama ministry slowly and intentionally. Before you decide to stage Holy Week for Kindergarten through fifth graders (complete with costumes, set, and a life-size cross), explore some simpler methods that allow you to discover the power of drama and how different methods fit into your ministry. One such method is the “presentational” style.
The Simple Power of Presentation
In a presentational style, an actor might play the role of a narrator or storyteller. You don’t play a “character” in the way you normally think of, and you acknowledge the audience and their presence. This is a great method to start with because a troop of actors isn’t needed, and can involve the audience (which engages the kids directly). Here are some examples:
¨ Instant Lesson—Just Add Kids I teach a lesson on David and Goliath in Promiseland using this tool. Five kids are brought up front to be Israelites, five other kids to be Philistines, one kid to be Goliath and one to be David. The Israelites and the Philistines receive cheap plastic swords and go to opposite ends of the stage. The Philistines are instructed that whenever I say “Philistines” and point to them, they should rattle their swords mightily and shout, “We are the best!” The Israelites’ role is to angrily shake their swords and growl whenever they are mentioned in the story. The would-be Goliath is put on a box for height and equipped with a rubber warrior’s helmet and spear, and told that when his name is mentioned he should give his mightiest evil laugh. David is dressed in shepherd’s regalia, complete with crook and sling. His job is to just stand where I put him as I navigate him through the story and the battlefield now created on stage. I then narrate the story of David and Goliath, stopping periodically to incorporate the two armies and the giant, while maneuvering David through his paces. I even swing his arm for him, sling and all, in the final scene that culminates in the death of the mammoth Philistine warrior.
This lesson is inevitably hilarious because the kids on stage always bring their own special flavor to the roles. But don’t be thrown by that. Let the laughs fall where they may, and you’ll find on the other side that the kids know the story cold.
¨ Audience Participation Another valuable presentational tool is to involve the entire audience. A friend of mine uses this method to tell the story of Jesus calming the storm. In addition to bringing up four kids to be disciples in her cardboard “boat”, she directs the audience at key sections of the story to provide the sound effects. The kids are instructed to rub their hands together (for light rain), continually snap (for plip-plopping raindrops), repeatedly slap their legs (when the storm kicks into high gear), and boom like thunder. A virtual typhoon is created in the room as the kids commit 110% to their part of the storm, and it’s always a moment like no other when the teacher (as Jesus) says “Peace, be still” and everything comes to a halt. My friend always says at that point “and the disciples were amazed … ” and, truth be told, so are the kids.
You could add endless variations to this method and apply it to just about any story you want to recreate. Have the kids shout a specific phrase at specific times. Or break the audience into sections and give each section a different noisemaker that symbolizes a specific event or character in the story, then whenever that character or event comes in, they sound off with their noisemaker. The possibilities go on. The key is that it involves only one person and allows the kids to participate in the story.
There’s something especially memorable about being involved in the telling of a powerful story.
¨ One-Man-Show A third presentational tool maximizes minimal numbers in a powerful way to bring a story to life. The One-Man-Show starts with just that; one man (or woman), and a coat-rack or simple dressing screen. Fill the coat-rack with at least one prop (a hat, a fake beard, a scarf—anything that goes on and off quickly) for every character in your Bible story. Then tell the story, and become all the characters along the way, changing props as you become each new character.
Take the time to fully put on each new prop. Half the fun for the kids is watching the actor struggle to “become” each new character. I once used a variation of this method in a lesson called “The Old Testament Rewind”. In this lesson, three actors play all (ok, several) of the characters in the entire Old Testament. The kids eat it up. Why? Sure, the doctrine is sound and the theology accurate. But to a kid there’s nothing quite like watching a grown man race around like a maniac desperately trying to get his Moses beard off so that he can become Joshua three seconds later.
The real test is that afterwards, most of the fourth graders in that room can remember a detailed chronology of the entire Old Testament. That’s the power of using creativity to elevate and teach scripture.
Next Steps
While you are exploring and having success with presentational methods like these, you can begin to lay the foundations for the rest of your drama ministry. The goal is to equip yourself in such a way that, in time, you will be able to use drama in any way you like: presentational, real-life, Bible recreation, silly, serious or whatever.
¨ Build a team You will be seriously frustrated if you scramble to find actors every time the idea to use drama comes up. Begin now to identify key people (maybe only two or three to start) in your church congregation who have the desire and ability to act or direct. And don’t forget kids. Older kids (third grade on up) can add a powerful component to dramas. But it’s not enough to build this team and just use them like crazy. They won’t last long. It’s important to consider how you will train and equip them to use they gifts. Is there a drama teacher in your midst willing to lead a workshop once a month? Consider how you will build back into the members of your team.
¨ Excellence In Malachi 1:6-8, God expresses anger at his people for offering him gifts that they wouldn’t think of offering to the world. And while this is not meant to encourage perfectionism or unhealthy attitudes, it should challenge the way we do drama. It should force us to think about issues of excellence, like rehearsal and memorization. Excellence means giving our best with what we have to God and to the kids. During this critical planning stage that you should think about how you will rehearse the dramas you wish to use and how you will encourage volunteers toward values like memorization. Overlooking these important issues in the beginning will lead to frustration later.
Drama has great power in our ministries to teach the Bible and change the way kids think, and feel, about Jesus. And while it may seem intimidating at first, if approached slowly and with intentionality, it can be one of the most rewarding tools you use to bring the Bible to life for your ministry’s kids.
Aaron Reynolds is the author of several children’s books. A ten-year veteran of Promiseland, the children’s ministry at Willow Creek Community Church, he now consults and leads workshops for ministries. Visit him at www.creativekidsministry.com for more information.
Copyright © 2006 Promiseland.
