Christian drama
Encyclopedia
Christian drama is drama
that explores Christian
themes.
stories in churches with accompanying song. As these liturgical plays became more popular, more vernacular or everyday elements were introduced and non-clergy began to participate. As the dramas became increasingly secular, they began to be performed entirely in the vernacular and were moved out of the churches by the 13th or 14th century.
These vernacular religious performances were taken over by the guild
s, with each guild taking responsibility for a particular piece of scriptural history. From the guild control they gained the name mystery play. The mystery play developed into a series of plays dealing with all the major events in the Christian calendar, from the Creation to the Day of Judgment. By the end of the 15th century, the tradition of acting these plays in cycles on festival days (such as the Feast of Corpus Christi
) was established across Europe.
of Yale College
in his "Essay on the Stage" declared that "to indulge a taste for playgoing means nothing more or less than the loss of that most valuable treasure: the immortal soul."
In Britain
, in the early twentieth century it was illegal for any human actor to portray a divine personage on stage, placing severe restrictions on Christian theatre. The groundbreaking radio drama
The Man Born to be King
shattered this taboo by not only including Jesus
as a character but giving him 'ordinary' speech rather than 'biblical' language. (Radio portrayals were not technically covered by the law, but the piece drew huge complaints nonetheless.)
T. S. Eliot
's play Murder in the Cathedral
explored Christian themes of martyrdom and sacrifice as well as church history.
In the sixties there was a sudden appearance of many plays dealing with Christian subjects, notably Jesus Christ Superstar
and Godspell
. At approximately the same time many churches were again turning to drama as a means of outreach, and as a valid art form in its own right. Small Christian theatre companies began to spring up in Britain and America.
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
that explores Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
themes.
Mystery play
Through the medieval period churches in Europe frequently performed mystery plays, retelling the stories of the Bible. They developed from the representation of BibleBible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
stories in churches with accompanying song. As these liturgical plays became more popular, more vernacular or everyday elements were introduced and non-clergy began to participate. As the dramas became increasingly secular, they began to be performed entirely in the vernacular and were moved out of the churches by the 13th or 14th century.
These vernacular religious performances were taken over by the guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
s, with each guild taking responsibility for a particular piece of scriptural history. From the guild control they gained the name mystery play. The mystery play developed into a series of plays dealing with all the major events in the Christian calendar, from the Creation to the Day of Judgment. By the end of the 15th century, the tradition of acting these plays in cycles on festival days (such as the Feast of Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi (feast)
Corpus Christi is a Latin Rite solemnity, now designated the solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ . It is also celebrated in some Anglican, Lutheran and Old Catholic Churches. Like Trinity Sunday and the Solemnity of Christ the King, it does not commemorate a particular event in...
) was established across Europe.
Morality play
By the 15th and 16th century the form had developed into the morality play. These were allegories, in which the protagonists met personifications of various moral attributes, the net effect being the encouragement to live a virtuous life.Puritan age
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries theatre was generally seen as wicked, and the church made attempts to suppress it. In the United States condemnation of the theatre was widespread in the eighteenth century; in 1794 President Timothy Dwight IVTimothy Dwight IV
Timothy Dwight was an American academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian, and author...
of Yale College
Yale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
in his "Essay on the Stage" declared that "to indulge a taste for playgoing means nothing more or less than the loss of that most valuable treasure: the immortal soul."
Modern
In the twentieth century churches, particularly evangelical churches, rediscovered the use of theatre as a form of outreach and as a valid art form.In Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, in the early twentieth century it was illegal for any human actor to portray a divine personage on stage, placing severe restrictions on Christian theatre. The groundbreaking radio drama
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
The Man Born to be King
The Man Born to be King
The Man Born to Be King is a radio drama based on the life of Jesus, produced and broadcast by the BBC during the Second World War. It is a play cycle consisting of twelve plays depicting specific periods in Jesus' life, from the events surrounding his birth to his death and resurrection...
shattered this taboo by not only including Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
as a character but giving him 'ordinary' speech rather than 'biblical' language. (Radio portrayals were not technically covered by the law, but the piece drew huge complaints nonetheless.)
T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
's play Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral is a verse drama by T. S. Eliot that portrays the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170, first performed in 1935...
explored Christian themes of martyrdom and sacrifice as well as church history.
In the sixties there was a sudden appearance of many plays dealing with Christian subjects, notably Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
and Godspell
Godspell
Godspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...
. At approximately the same time many churches were again turning to drama as a means of outreach, and as a valid art form in its own right. Small Christian theatre companies began to spring up in Britain and America.
See also
- Biblical StorytellingBiblical storytellingBiblical storytelling is a discipline in which the storyteller takes a passage from the Bible, studies and reflects on that passage, and then tells it in a way so that the hearers may best connect with the story as well. This is often done by learning the words of the story by heart and acting out...
- Christian literatureChristian literatureChristian Literature is writing that deals with Christian themes and incorporates the Christian world view. This constitutes a huge body of extremely varied writing.-Scripture:...
- Easter DramaEaster DramaAn Easter Drama is a liturgical drama or religious theatrical performance in the Roman Catholic tradition, largely limited to the Middle Ages. These performances evolved from celebrations of the liturgy to incorporate later dramatic and secular elements, and came to be performed in local languages...
- Jesuit dramaJesuit dramaJesuit drama was a form of theatre practised in the colleges of the Society of Jesus between the sixteenth and 18th centuries, as a way of instructing students in rhetoric and imparting Roman Catholic doctrine.-History:...
- Liturgical dramaLiturgical dramaLiturgical drama or religious drama, in its various Christian contexts, originates from the mass itself, and usually presents a relatively complex ritual that includes theatrical elements...
- Passion playPassion playA Passion play is a dramatic presentation depicting the Passion of Jesus Christ: his trial, suffering and death. It is a traditional part of Lent in several Christian denominations, particularly in Catholic tradition....
External links
- Dramatic Christian Ministries - Narrow Gate Theater
- Jeannette Clift George.com and/or www.adplayers.org
- One Man Show (Christian drama ministry)
- Righteous Insanity (Christian drama resources)
- Christians in Theatre Arts
- Associates & Savidge
- RichDrama.com