A Note from the Director:

We are so excited to share our Easter Film Project with you! This is Theatre Veritas' first ever film and Easter themed production. What better time than during a pandemic to share the Gospel and love of Jesus Christ. The students and I have taken 6 mini Easter plays from Christian Publishers, adapted them for the screen, and pieced them together in a vignette style for you to watch in the convenience of your own home On Demand (see film synopses below)! 

Theaters all over the world have closed their doors. Live productions and filming have come to a sobering halt. Both professional and amateur have turned to virtual productions with both successes and disasters….depending on who you speak to. 

Rather than attempting this approach, I wanted to find a creative way for students to maintain their distance, but still actively learn and be able to perform in person, without the restrictions that come with a virtual production. Choosing optimism, we are embracing this as a unique opportunity for our department.  

Historically, Theatre Veritas has consisted of stage training and live performances, but with this film project, students have been introduced to basic film technique, film editing, and its' night and day differences between the world of live theater and acting for the camera.  Despite our inexperience and lack of professional sets and equipment, we have learned a lot along the way and had fun in the process. It's been great to peel back the layers of film and see the depth of what goes on behind the scenes.  It’s a whole new perspective!

As always, we thank you for your love and support.  We hope to perform for you again in person in the near future.  

Enjoy the show!

Chelsea St. John Wade 

*Disclaimer: CDC guidelines were followed.  Social distancing and masks were used during the making of our films (unless outdoors or actor alone).  For mask-less monologues and close-ups, students were safely isolated by themselves in front of camera. It was not always possible to film all scenes and monologues continuously or together.  Due to this, there are breaks in continuity.* 

Film Breakdown:

-(3) Eyewitnesses  monologues (Rhetoric Students)

-The Case of the Empty Tomb  (Logic School)

-(2) Eyewitnesses monologues (Rhetoric Students)

 -'Twas the Time Before Easter (Logic Students)

-The Burden  (Rhetoric Students)

-(2) Eyewitnesses monologues (Rhetoric Students)

-Easter at the Museum (Logic Students)

-(2) Eyewitnesses monologues (Rhetoric Students)

-Capernaum P.D. (Rhetoric Students)

-(3) Eyewitnesses monologues (Rhetoric Students)

Play Synopsis:

Eyewitnesses: A Collection of Passion Perspectives by Steven M. Cross  

A collection of 12 monologues, presents the passion of Christ from twelve different perspectives.  These monologues, begin with Jesus the night of His betrayal and end years later with John, an exile waiting for a final revelation.  Each monologue reveals the impact Jesus had on that character's life.

The Case of the Empty Tomb by Kent Syverson

It's the day after the Resurrection.  The Sadducees, who say there is no Resurrection (Matthew 22:23), have hired attorney Mason Perry to prove that Jesus did not rise from the dead.  He hires four other detectives to help him with the case.  B.J. Fetch Him, Sam Shovel, Nancy Dreary, and Sherkey Homely with sidekick Dr. What's Wrong.  They meet again thirty-nine days later to compare notes.  Each detective solves the case by using one of the four theories people use to try to disprove the Resurrection:

1) The women went to the wrong tomb

2) It was Judas Iscariot who was crucified, not Jesus

3) Jesus didn't really die, he only passed out

4) The disciples stole the body of Jesus

'Twas the Time Before Easter by Kimberlee Mendoza

A narrative Easter story for children.

The Burden by Greg Sullivan

This drama gives a new look to freedom.  Burdens both literal and figurative are central.  A man encumbered by a heavy bag slowly trudges toward his destination of "freedom". He struggles under the weight of his failures and bad memories.  Then he meets the Liberator, who offers to help him shoulder the load, but the Liberator tells him, "I can't take it from you --- you have to give it to me."  This is a powerful dramatization of 1 Peter 5:7 --- "Give your worries and cares to God, for He cares about what happens to you."

Easter at the Museum by Debi Olsthoorn

In Easter at the Museum, Classic Easter paintings come to life!  As the security guard escorts an insurance agent around the museum, various paintings come to life, giving us an insight to different parts of the Easter story.  

Capernaum P.D. by Daniel Wray

Capernaum P.D. is a spoof of the old Dragnet TV series.  The premise of this dinner theatre in five parts is the investigation of several miraculous, and by the Pharisees' perceptions, blasphemous occurrences in Galilee in the two years prior to the crucifixion of Jesus.  The dynamic duo of Joe Thursday and Frank Cannon, detectives extraordinaire, has been assigned the case once again.  The transgressions include all of the miracles that Jesus performed, from the wine at the wedding to the feeding of the five thousand.  The investigation takes some hilarious turns as the duo tries to determine what the truth is, but it culminates in a poignant conclusion.