UNDER CONSTRUCTION —
The Building of a Play!
CONSTRUCTION NEWS - By Fred David Kenney, Jr.
"For me, working on a biblical play is kind of like building an addition to a house by yourself. You never want to have to stop after you begin. You want to make sure that you can get the work done without any time-consuming distractions. I have been working on the “Dan” play for years, but to stick with my construction analogy, I have really only been looking at construction materials, paint colors, tools, and guessing how many nails I’ll need.
Since the beginning of this new year, I have been doing much more. I would love to say that I have rented a dumpster, started ripping up shingles and siding, chopped a hole where the addition is going to go, and began attaching the new frame. However, just like in the real world, you can’t just begin a major structure-altering project without a building permit and Blueprints/ plans (at least not in MY hometown). For the sake of my point, let’s assume God is issuing the permit and I am also working with Him to get the blueprints right before construction starts.
Every play that we have produced at Plays On Word Theater has been produced and directed by God. I am just an employee of His. I am the actor/ assistant director in charge of performing His vision. His direction is very clear to me. He's impressed upon me how He wants things to look and sound.
Each play has been a challenge, but never a burden. For example, Genesis “Joe” was a challenge because it was the first long format play that God had me perform. I was learning His guidance throughout the process. The joy for me was how He made my work almost effortless. I’ll go into much greater detail of that whole play later in another post.
For the “Pete” play, the significant challenge for me was how to harmonize the four different Gospel accounts. Unlike the continuous narrative of Genesis “Joe”, this was a challenge because the Gospels are not like a biography that follows an exact timeline. I describe them as being more like theological portraits. The Holy Spirit, in concert with the individual authors, painted a picture of Christ Jesus. Now, by no means, does that make the Gospels any less accurate or trustworthy. I will discuss this challenge in greater depth in another post as well.
The “Christmas Joe” play was challenging because I did not have an extensive amount of material from which to draw. It seemed like I was trying to build a two-car garage with 1 two by four and a sheet of plywood. At first glance, the “Christmas Joe” story is only found in Matthew 1:18-25; and Luke 2:1-21. That’s it! Compare that to the multiple chapters of content for Genesis “Joe” and “Pete” and you will see my dilemma. Originally, the “Christmas Joe” play was only 11 minutes long, 9 minutes if I talked really fast. Currently, it is around 25 minutes and will be about 30- 35 for Christmas 2021! This is not because I have magically found some long lost “Christmas verses.” No, God has directed me to go deeper into the Word and share some of the wonderful things that are connected to the Christmas story. For example, we now touch upon the great Old Testament love story of Boaz and Ruth. How can that be part of the Christmas story you ask? Well, where did that story take place? Who would eventually come from the new family of Boaz and Ruth? It took place in Bethlehem. Likewise, Boaz and Ruth would conceive a son that would become the grandfather to king David, the shepherd that would become king! Additionally, Jesus would be born in this very town and He would also be a direct descendant of David. I also utilize some of the incredible Old Testament passages that directly predict the Christmas story. These kinds of additions have made the “Christmas Joe” play even more enjoyable for the body of Christ. So, perhaps you can now better appreciate some of my challenges in working out these plays.
I say all this because I have begun “Construction” on the “Dan” play and it has been a great joy so far. I’m not at the building stage, I’m at the researching and learning foundational information stage.
I have been teaching from the book of Daniel for many years. However, a play requires a deep dive into the text and surrounding information at a level that goes beyond a short sermon. All of the “sermons” need to tie together into one complete narrative. So, I am at the construction planning and research level right now.
I loved doing research papers for Bible college. I would learn all kinds of great unrelated, yet biblically important, things in the processes. As I embark on this construction project, I will try to bring you along for this building process as the Lord brings this play to life. Please keep us in prayer as we work toward this goal." ~ FDKjr