Drama Ministry

No Budget? No Problem! (Part 1)

By Carmel Garvin Hearn

Does it seem like every time you stage a drama, you hear the sound of cash registers ringing in your head? Costumes (ka-ching), props (ka-ching), sets (ka-ching), lights (ka-ching), sound (ka-ching), and on and on it goes. Are you wondering how you can be a good steward of your drama funds while still taking care of all those necessities? Or, if your church is like mine, does your drama budget fall so short of most of those ka-chings that you don't even dare to dream of things like real sets, nifty props, and realistic costumes? Seasoned church drama directors will tell you to improvise. But if you're just getting started, it's difficult to decide when, where, and on what to spend those precious funds. It's enough to make you want to quit before you ever present your first drama. One day you'll have a primo prop closet or a few nice set pieces. But today you're trying to figure out how to get started.

Here are some ideas for low ­budget ways to start and grow your church's drama ministry.

Sets and Props: If your worship setting works perfectly fine as is, great! It's okay if the audience members have to use their imagi­nations a little. If the set calls for a "living room," head for the church library, parlor, or vestibule. Chances are you'll find an upholstered chair and small end table. Voila ... a living room! A kitchen can be accomplished with a small wooden table (imagine Julia Child's TV kitchen). Give the actor a large bowl and mixing spoon for some "action," and the audience will readily accept that this is indeed a kitchen. If the script calls for a nativity scene, get a little straw, but leave the live animals at the farm. Keep things simple. Plastic cups and dishes are preferable to real china. Lightweight items such as paper cups can be glued or taped down to a serving tray to keep them from falling off and creating a distraction.

It's important to make your acting area as visible to as many people as possible. If your chancel area has a raised platform, use that as your stage. Check out the ambient lighting and put it to good use as well.

There may be times when you really need a backdrop or walls that don't naturally exist in your setting. Go to your local home improvement store and pick up a couple of pairs of bi­-fold closet doors. The doors will stand on their own, and you can hook one pair to another with screen door latches (also found at the hardware store). These make great backdrops, they're perfect for surprise entrances, and they are very easy and quick to set up and break down. 

Costumes: Most productions call for costumes that fall into three categories: contemporary, biblical, or special. The first category is easy, since your actors have the costumes right in their own closets. And most churches have a collection of biblical costumes from years of Christmas nativity programs. If not, recruit some crafty-types (you know, those ladies who can sew ANYTHING) to pick up some fabric remnants from the local fabric shops. There are patterns available, but very little sewing is actually required. Just check out the stained glass windows or picture Bibles for ideas and inspiration. The third category is the most difficult. The play may call for specific, specialized costumes, and you may think you have to go to the costume rental store (ka-ching). Not so fast. You probably have at least a part of the costume on hand. When my church produced a play recently, I was able to use our stock biblical costumes for all of the characters except for the angel Gabriel. We had some white choir robes on hand that worked well for the general "adult angel" look, but I wanted a great set of wings, which I found at Party City for $21.99. Everyone involved thought that was money well spent. And I'm sure we'll use those wings again and again.

Lighting and sound are probably the most critical, and potentially the most expensive drama budget items. There are some shortcuts that work, and others that you should avoid at all costs. We’ll cover those areas in the next Drama Ministry blog…stay tuned!

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