The Philippines has been on our hearts for many years. We are so excited to announce that a new team in Iligan City has signed an agreement to produce for “He’s Alive!” for 2022. As we learn to operate in these days of restricted travel, in a first for our ministry, we welcomed our new friends in the Philippines into the family over Zoom. Come along with us and meet the new team.
Last year we began a journey to take what we have in our ministry manuals and create videos to help train our next generation of host cities to present “He’s Alive!” With another season stymied in spring of 2021 due to the continuing COVID-19 restrictions, our video production plans were put on pause as well.
Before you can take the stage, you have to find one. So to help our new host communities select their venue, we walked through the process and pointed out some of the unique considerations to take into account when choosing a place to host the Passion Play.
With a new season of production on the horizon we are looking forward to taking our cameras behind the scenes to help train our new friends in Iligan City, Philippines and beyond.
Here is the list of videos that we will be gathering footage for and producing as we head into the 2022 season:
How to select a board
How to hold a meeting
Ministry checklist and filling out leadership team
Scheduling the season
Looking for a venue
Planning a set for that venue
Props overview
Crosses and cross base construction
How to put a cross up
Casting the play
Goals for each block
Behind the characters: who’s sandals are you stepping into?
How to run a rehearsal
How to do a partial and full run through
How to run a dress rehearsal
How to run a technical rehearsal
Costumes overview
Disciple costumes
Crowd Costumes
Sanhedrin Costumes
Roman Costumes
Front of house
Getting the word out
Altar call and response team
Special effects makeup
Lighting scene by scene
Props scene by scene
Micing the show
Back stage and scene changes
Director notes: who is on stage and how to make transitions
Our team in Minya, Egypt putting the finishing touches on their set before their premier presentation.
In the book of Nehemiah chapter two Nehemiah tours the fallen city of Jerusalem then unveils his plan to rebuild its walls. The enthusiastic response of the people around him was this;
…they said, “Let us rise up and build.”
Like Nehemiah’s generation it’s no secret our world has experienced a devastating season of destruction. But guys it’s time to build again. At Passion Play Ministries International we’ve never been more excited to proclaim the good news we’ve found in Jesus Christ.
We pray this letter finds you and your family blessed beyond measure as we finally make our way past COVID 19 and social distancing. Perhaps the treasure we found most precious through this dismal season of isolation is a greater appreciation for relationship. In Genesis 2:18 God told us, “It is not good for man to be alone.”
Passion Play Ministries International has a long-standing appreciation for relationship building. For the past 35 years we’ve been blessed to present the message of Jesus Christ to audiences world-wide. Thousands of volunteer cast members have worked side by side to present the powerful message of God’s great love to literally hundreds of thousands. Along the way we’ve grown in our relationship with God and one another.
In March of 2020, the live staging of the Passion Play was temporarily placed on hold by the global COVID 19 pandemic. It was an epic event of Biblical proportion. Needless to say, each of us has been affected by this epidemic to one degree or another. In fact, generations will feel the impact of this crisis for years to come.
Knowing God never wastes a hurt perhaps this struggle provides better insight as to how Nehemiah felt when he received news the walls of his ancestral home, Jerusalem, were broken down and its gates had been burned with fire. Nehemiah 1:4 tells us that he sat down, wept and mourned for several days. Then he prayed and asked the Lord that he might find favor with the king. His passion was to build, and it became infectious.
Like Nehemiah’s generation our world has experienced a terrible season of destruction. Many of us have lost loved ones, businesses have closed and families have been destroyed. It’s been a time of incredible challenge and frustration, but it is also a time of great opportunity. At Passion Play Ministries International we’ve never been more excited to proclaim the good news we’ve found in our risen Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Like Nehemiah and those who surrounded him we have “A Passion to Build”
As we move beyond the Covid crisis PPMI host communities are anxiously planning their next presentations of the Passion Play. Our ministry teams in the US, South Africa, India, Mexico, Egypt and Central America are enthusiastically looking forward to the 2022 Easter season. A number of these ministry teams will require financial assistance in order to step back on to the stage.
In addition to existing PPMI host communities returning to live stage performances we have a brand-new ministry effort moving into the Philippines. Please pray for this new ministry team as we work together to create a new generation of training resources. This is an effort that will take the ministry forward for years to come. We sincerely appreciate your continued prayers and financial support for all of these efforts.
During Holy week, 2018 we were pleased to have a friend with us from out of town. Way out of town in fact: Minya Egypt!
Victor Habib, was making the rounds between our Denver and Four Corners presentations of the Passion Play He’s Alive. He was taking a look under the hood and behind the scenes in preparation for training a team in his hometown. While visiting the States we signed an agreement to produce the ministry in Minya.
Following his visit to the US Victor went home and assembled an outstanding team that went on to stage our very first Arabic presentation of He’s Alive the Passion Play in October of 2019. More than 1,000 people attended this outdoor event. We were blessed to be there and witness this presentation. In the midst of great opposition there are also so many great opportunities to share the good news of Jesus Christ in this part of the world.
March 23rd and 24th, 2018 the Passion Play of Barquisimeto, Venezuela hosted their premier presentations of He’s Alive. This effort represented PPMI’s first opportunity to partner with the body of Christ in South America. It came at a time when the country of Venezuela was experiencing extreme political, social and economic turmoil. Their national elections were held less than a month following this presentation.
The Venezuelan state orchestra accompanied 150 actors in staging the Passion Play. A full length video along with behind the scenes interviews with a number of actors and attendees can be seen on the team’s Instagram.
