Dramas With A Message

An exciting collection of twenty-one church-tested dramatic sketches that require only two to four characters, simple sets, and everyday costumes. Built-in performance and copying permission.

This exciting collection of twenty-one church-tested dramatic sketches requires only two to four characters, simple sets, and everyday costumes. Each drama is easy to perform and effectively communicates biblical truths and values. Perfect for churches with as few as fifty members or as many as five thousand. Dramas are topically arranged and easily adapted to morning or evening worship services, retreats or conferences, and evangelistic events. The easy-to-use format allows for notes and modifications to fit specific needs. Permission to photocopy these dramas for ministry use in included! Topics covered in this volume are: angels, Christmas, death, despair, eternity, failure, faith, grace, heaven, hypocrisy, idolatry, loneliness, love, materialism, prayer, racism, skepticism, suffering, temptation, trust, and wisdom.

An exciting collection of twenty-one church-tested dramatic sketches that require only two to four characters, simple sets, and everyday costumes. Built-in performance and copying permission.

Twelve Plays for Christmas … but not a Partridge in a Pear Tree is a collection of Christian dramas written by Skip Martin that explore the true meaning of Christmas. With an average running time of between thirty and forty minutes, each of these dramas has already been performed before live audiences of more than ten thousand people. Filled with lively characters, witty dialogue, and plenty of humor, each story keeps in view the goal of helping audience members develop a better understanding of the gift of Christmas. Any of the scripts in Twelve Plays for Christmas would make an excellent addition to a church Christmas program, Singing Christmas Tree, or other church event. “Skip Martin has the rare ability to touch people’s hearts with a unique presentation of the Good News.” — The Rev. Dan Cracchiola, music minister, Grace Church, Sarasota, Florida “Skip Martin has given us a volume of Christmas plays that are delightful and entertaining … The plays have conveyed the message of Christmas to all who have seen them performed. Having warmed the hearts and drawn the souls of thousands across the years, they will be a treasure to all who experience them.” — Dr. Frank Crumpler, retired pastor, Alpharetta, Georgia “We found these scripts easy to use and added our own music to make a memorable program. Each play has a great message that the audience seems to relate to.” — Becky Lawrence, drama director, First Baptist Church, Brandon, Florida “As a professional actor who has done many Christmas drama programs, my greatest thrill is when we’ve successfully touched not just the Christians in the audience but have affected the hearts and minds of the nonbelievers as well. Skip Martin’s plays do just that. I can attest to their effectiveness, the quality of the characters in them, and the ease with which they can be presented. I strongly recommend them!” — Mark Woodland, actor, BFA Florida State University, Bradenton, Florida “These dramas crafted and created by Skip Martin are spot on. Having used them at two different Christmas productions, I can say first hand that they are witty, solid, and provide room for adding your own personal creative touch. If you are in need of dramas for your Christmas program, this should be your go-to source.” — Mike Drury, lead pastor, Pine Hills Church, Fort Wayne, Indiana

Offers new understandings of gender construction and nation-building through the lens of recent Chinese television programs.

Introducing drama to the learning experience is guaranteed to enrich a child's development, and is an especially effective approach for children with special educational needs, including those with autism spectrum disorders. This practical handbook offers teachers an array of simple and easy-to-implement theatrical techniques that will enhance students' learning and encourage artistic expression. The author demonstrates how dramatic play doesn't have to be restricted to drama lessons and can be applied to a diverse range of school subjects and recreational settings. 'The Little Red Hen', for example, covers themes that are relevant to literacy (rhyming and rhythm), maths (counting seeds), science (discussing farming), and art lessons (designing costumes). Step-by-step lesson plans take teachers through every aspect of running fun and engaging story dramas, including warm ups, movement, songs and props. Handy tips throughout suggest ideas for developing the plays further and ways to adapt them according to the needs of the group. This book will be an essential and comprehensive guide for anyone interested in drama as an educational tool in inclusive or special needs settings.

A fascinating look at Hollywood’s most turbulent decade and the demise of the studio system—set against the boom of the post–World War II years, the Cold War, and the atomic age—and the movies that reflected the seismic shifts Hollywood in the 1950s was a period when the film industry both set conventions and broke norms and traditions—from Cinerama, CinemaScope, and VistaVision to the epic film and lavish musical. It was a decade that saw the rise of the anti-hero; the smoldering, the hidden, and the unspoken; teenagers gone wild in the streets; the sacred and the profane; the revolution of the Method; the socially conscious; the implosion of the studios; the end of the production code; and the invasion of the ultimate body snatcher: the “small screen” television. Here is Eisenhower’s America—seemingly complacent, conformity-ridden revealed in Vincente Minnelli’s Father of the Bride, Walt Disney’s Cinderella, and Brigadoon, among others. And here is its darkening, resonant landscape, beset by conflict, discontent, and anxiety (The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Asphalt Jungle, A Place in the Sun, Touch of Evil, It Came From Outer Space) . . . an America on the verge of cultural, political and sexual revolt, busting up and breaking out (East of Eden, From Here to Eternity, On the Waterfront, Sweet Smell of Success, The Wild One, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Jailhouse Rock). An important, riveting look at our nation at its peak as a world power and at the political, cultural, sexual upheavals it endured, reflected and explored in the quintessential American art form.