Manitoba’s Passion Play immerses audience in the story

Sep 23, 2019 by and

Manitoba’s Passion Play, which celebrated its 20th anniversary this summer, is set in the Pembina Valley at the Oak Valley Outdoor Theatre. — Manitoba Passion Play

LA RIVIERE, Man. — Every summer, more than 100 volunteers from across Manitoba gather in the rolling hills of the Pembina Valley to bring to life the most important event of the Christian faith: Jesus’...

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Embodying the mystery with theater in church

Nov 27, 2017 by and

Mennonite Worship and Song Committee members Cynthia Neufeld Smith, co-pastor of Southern Hills Mennonite Church in Topeka, Kan., and Tom Harder, co-pastor of Lorraine Avenue Mennonite Church in Wichita, Kan., lead a workshop Nov. 18 at a worship symposium hosted by Bethel College. The committee is working to create a new hymnal by 2020. — Vada Snider/Bethel College

NORTH NEWTON, Kan. — Christians haven’t taken their liturgy to the theater, noted Bethel College campus pastor Peter Goerzen, but maybe they should. Goerzen was opening Bethel’s fourth biennial Worship...

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Lockdown puts new twist on Bethel prison theater

Feb 15, 2016 by and

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NORTH NEWTON, Kan. — When professor of communication arts John McCabe-Juhnke put his former “pilot project” into Bethel College’s interterm curriculum, he knew his students would learn things that...

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Theater addresses MC Canada sexuality conflict

Sep 28, 2015 by and

In This Will Lead to Dancing, Sam and Alex are teens who go on a hunger strike until their Mennonite congregation will accept LGBT people as members. — Theatre of the Beat

Theatre of the Beat in Stouff­ville, Ont., is taking on same-sex sexuality and gender within Mennonite Church Canada in a new play written by artistic director Johnny Wideman. “We would hear, ‘Oh, if you...

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Directors carry on a 100-year theater tradition

Apr 14, 2014 by and

Melissa Friesen, center, and Crystal Sellers Battle work with members of the ensemble for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. — Photo by Kerry Bush/Bluffton University

BLUFFTON, Ohio — A Bluffton University tradition with events dating back a century, May Day weekend includes a Maypole dance by first-year students and is capped by baccalaureate services and...

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Director helps students be part of something bigger

Apr 14, 2014 by and

Algernon (Andrew Pullin) gets to know Cecily (Mary Beth Sharp) in Rosedale Bible College’s production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. — Aaron Beitzel/RBC

ROSEDALE, Ohio — Every year at Rosedale Bible College, the stage in the chapel undergoes a transformation, students wander about practicing lines and examining their motivation, and Christa J. Wolf works her...

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Students explore musical interests within community

Apr 14, 2014 by , and

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HARRISONBURG, Va. — A music student at Eastern Mennonite University might: Sing a classical aria in a voice lesson on Monday mornings; Rehearse works by Mozart and Bono in Chamber Singers on Wednesday...

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Class uses stage to shine a spotlight on social issues

Apr 14, 2014 by and

After taking Messiah’s Theatre and Social Change course, Christie Heimbach wrote and performed in Beyond the Rain, a play that follows the story of a girl caught in the tragedy of human trafficking. — Jess Ploszaj/Messiah College

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — In The Real Thing: a Play, Czechoslovakian producer and writer Tom Stoppard wrote, “Words are sacred. . . . If you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a...

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