Pageant Report

Well, we made it. And I enjoyed every minute of it.

And as we had hoped, it was absolutely the best pageant ever. Nothing went wrong, nothing got missed or forgotten! The choir were outstanding, the band were tight, the soloists sang beautifully, the cast were great - they delivered all their lines perfectly and hit all their cues on the nail. They were funny, tender, over-the-top when needed and very moving at just the right moments. The animals behaved and unlike a very memorable previous year, the sheep did not start mating as the Pastor reached the climax of his gospel message.

Thank you again to everyone who made it possible.

The part that made me stop and think was in the first performance. Nick (King Herod) was delivering his lines: "A new King? So, he’s finally here – all of the predictions, all of the prophecies – ha! I will show them. I will show the world – my power is far greater than some prophesy! I will destroy this so-called King of the Jews! There will never be another King in Judea so long as I am alive!" and all the time the little kids crouched down on the carpet in the front rows were booing and hissing just like in a pantomime.

And then Nick said "And who will come to bring him gifts?" and they all shouted "I will!", and again after the next line "Who will come to worship him?" all the kids shouted out "I will!" Wow! It was so moving - totally spontaneous and heartfelt.

Of course, the relief that it is all over and that it went so well is now tempered with the worrying thought "What on earth are we going to do next year?"