Christmas and New Year

The Christmas story told by the most famous participant in the story, but who remembers it least. There are three levels to this play, the story and the characters, the small kids who are sitting and listening to the play, and the ‘tweens’ who are doing what they do best… whispering and making comments about how boring things are…

Terry Topper Sandy (his friend) Gabby (angel) Gram Younger Gram Younger Terry

Terry Topper, is a TV presenter and journalist, no longer believes in God and sees little sense in Christmas, until he gets a surprise visitor.

  (A Reader’s Theater Presentation) A visitor is sent to earth. He‘s been here before and doesn’t want to come back. Earth people are violent and unpredictable. Yet his world has encountered difficult times and his commander wonders how such a violent people as humans have survived all these centuries. So he sends Travillion back once more. . ..

  A sketch to illustrate how easily we can become deflected from finding the real meaning of Christmas.  It presents the quest to discover the truth about Christmas as a train journey to Bethlehem, with a second character boarding the wrong trains. 

Narrator Scrooge Bob Cratchet Tim Cratchet Jacob Marley Elizabeth Diana George John Ghost of the Past Ghost of the Present Wonder Joy Ghost of the Future Jesus Mary Joseph Guest #1 Guest #2 Guest #3

When Theatre Producer Ebenezer Scrooge discovers that his theatre is being used to host a Christmas Play, he decides to sabotage it. That night he is warned by his old partner Jacob Marley of three ghosts who will soon be there to change his outlook on life. He is taken from the Manager scene to the crucifixtion, and the home of his employee Bob Cratchit to his own grave. Based on Charles Dicken's A Christmas to Remember, this show helps show the true "Meaning of the Season", with moments of laughter and fun, and seasoned with enough carols and songs to keep the audience on the edge of their seats. (Note: the following is only an excerpt from the play. To obtain a full script, write to the author, whose email is at the foot of the script.)

Narrator Old George, owner of the gas station Homeless man Stranded motorist Officer Young Man Two policemen Two medics

  Old George, owner of a gas station, has not celebrated Christmas since his wife died. But a chain of startling events on Christmas Eve show he understands the true spirit of the time.

Billy-Jo Baker - host of the TV show. (If a male plays the role, the name can be changed to Billy-Bob Baker. This actor should be good at ad libbing in case some lines are forgotten.) Contestant #1, Lucky Landers (ideally a young female). The character calls for a younger actor. This character has large social conscience and is naïve about others who do not. Contestant #2, Eager Ellison (ideally a male). This character is the ultimate in slick and sleaze.         Contestant #3, Dilly Dobson (ideally a male). This is an extreme Christmas spirit type role. Costuming should reflect all the glitz and cheap trinket aspects of Christmas. The character is a bit slow witted.    Figure: A "mysterious" figure dressed in black Miss Vanity Wright (female): - host's right hand girl. This character is younger than Billy-Jo and only has the job because Billy-Jo is her aunt. A lot of attitude should be shown here. Announcer/technician (could be two people). This person is responsible for the sound and lighting effects. If power-point facilities are available, slides could be projected to augment the telling of the Christmas story by the mysterious figure. Audience prompter: Holds up signs like "Applause", "Laugh", "Cheer", "Boo", for audience response. The prompter may want to address the audience before the play starts to get them in the mood. General Plot Billie-Jo Barker introduces the game show. In this show, contestants must answer questions regarding Christmas. If the answer is correct, the contestant gets money and points. There should be children in the crowd. Since only children know the true meaning of Christmas, they are the expert panel. Each contestant gets only one chance to ask the expert panel for his/her opinion. There are three contestants in this play. The second contestant, Eager Ellison, is a real jerk. He keeps distracting the other contestants, convincing them to change their minds, jumping in front of them so his hand is recognized first, etc. He ends up with all of the money. As each contestant wins, Vanity Wright presents the money to the contestant. At the end, the contestant with the most correct answers gets all of the money. Throughout the questioning, Eager Ellison cheats in every way possible to get a hold of the money. He also makes fun of the other contestants as they lose. Near the end of the play, Eager seems to suffer a heart attack and, in his unconscious state, appears to get a visitation that changes his outlook on life.

A one-act play, based on a famous TV game show, used to highlight the real meaning of Christmas. This play was performed, as part of the service, on Christmas Eve of 2011 at St. James Centennial United Church in Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada. Les Kovacs wrote the original script but members of the cast later added many of the lines. Feel free to personalize the lines to suit your cast. We did.

    Bill, Lilly, Mick, Bruce, Diana, Steve, Christina, Aunt Maude Setting:    The lounge of a typical suburban home. A long table is covered with a large Christmas table cloth and there are assorted items of Christmas food on either end of the table.  There is also a large teapot and some cups at one end.  This is the kitchen table at which all characters come for breakfast and there are kitchen stools arranged behind the table.  All characters come to the table dressed in their dressing gowns and slippers, except Christina.

It’s the day after Christmas Day, and a typical suburban family struggle to deal with the aftermath, all but one missing the real point of Christmas.

    Stan the Man (radio announcer), Ted, Steve, Narelle, Bill, Molly. Setting:    On stage there is a chair and table with a microphone attached to look like a radio studio.  There are a number of objects on the table, eg, coffee mug, plunger, snacks, stress balls, pen, etc.  Using these objects gives a good reason for the radio announcer to look down – where the script is stuck to the table.

A late-night radio host fields a variety of comments from listeners about Christmas.

John:, the innkeeper Ann:, his wife. Ann and John have been married a long time. They are both forthright and argumentative, but they love each other. Servant, an unnamed senior servant of the Magi

The Christmas story from a different point of view. Suitable for Epiphany, Christmas or New Year. It is the night before the Magi visit. Our scene is the inn in Bethlehem. Mary, Joseph and Jesus are absent – they have moved out of the stable into a house in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:11). The Magi will visit tomorrow. The characters are the innkeeper who let them use his stable, his wife, and one of the servants of the Magi.

A short skit featuring the Christmas hymn, O Holy Night. One stormy Christmas Eve, a burned-out Pastor begins work on his sermon for Christmas Day. Inspiration is lacking and even God doesn't seem to hear his cry for help. Will he overcome his painful past or will this Christmas continue to be haunted by memories of what could have been?

A shepherd and one of the three wise men experience the peace of Christmas together as a result of an unexpected meeting.