I have a confession to make: When someone tells me they’re starting a drama ministry at their church, I cringe a little.
Don’t get me wrong—I love drama. I know that plays can change lives because I’ve invested a big chunk of my life in producing them! But unfortunately, I’ve also witnessed some really bad church dramas.
So if you’re thinking about starting a theatre program in your church, I want to suggest five important questions that you should ask yourself before you hold auditions. If you answer these queries carefully, you’ll be on your way to starting a drama ministry that doesn’t stink.
1. Why Are You Doing This?
Be as honest as you can with yourself: Why do you want to do drama at church? If you’re longing to change lives through powerful storytelling, you’re on the right track. If you want to empower others express their creative gifts in the Kingdom of God, good for you!
But if you have a secret dream of seeing your name in lights, it’s time to do some soul-searching. In drama ministry, you may experience temperamental actors, a dearth of quality scripts, long hours in rehearsal, and painful church politics. If you’re doing this for the wrong reasons, you will burn out. Even worse, you’ll miss God’s will for your life.
2. Is Your Congregation Ready for This?
Every church needs to tell God’s story—but not all of them should use drama to do it. Maybe you have a congregation of under a hundred people, and none of them are artistically-inclined. Maybe you know that the first Sunday you feature a worship drama, twelve families will leave the church. You probably aren’t ready for prime time.
On the other hand, if your church is willing to invest some money in training and scripts … if you can think of folks in your small group who might make good actors … if your whole congregation loves stories … this may be the moment that God wants to do something new in your midst!
3. Are You Willing to Pursue Training?
One of your first steps in leading a drama ministry should be to seek quality training. You don’t need a theatre degree, but consider taking a basic acting class at your community college. Alternately, attend a good Christian arts conference, like the ones hosted by Karitos or Willow Creek. Plus, buy the book Drama Ministry, by Steve Pederson (Zondervan)—it’s the best single-volume reference to get you started.
While we’re talking about upgrading your skills, make sure that you find talented people for your team as well. In short, that means conducting auditions. Tryouts send the message that acting with your drama team is a privilege, and helps you discern which people God has truly called to the ministry.
4. Do You Know What Makes a Good Script?
Read lots of scripts before you start your drama ministry. Order an assortment from publishers like the Willow Creek Association and Lillenas Drama, then read them carefully. Which ones do you like? Which ones might work at your church? You’ll gradually learn what distinguishes the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
Theatre is a unique medium: The qualities that make a good play are very different from those that make a good sermon. So look for scripts that tell a compelling story (like Jesus’ parables) instead of preaching at you.
5. Will You Work Hard Enough to Achieve Non-Distracting Excellence?
Church drama doesn’t often achieve Broadway-quality results. But that’s okay—you should hold your team to a different standard. Let’s call it non-distracting excellence. In other words, try to discern if your congregation was genuinely moved by your last drama. Did they experience the message … or did poor performance quality stand in the way?
Once you start hearing from people who were authentically touched by your work, you’re on the way to having a drama ministry that doesn’t stink. Better still, you can experience the joy of making an impact in the Kingdom of God.
Copyright © 2010 George Halitzka. All rights reserved. This article was first published in Ministry Today in the March/ April 2010 issue.
