“The sower sows the word.” Mark 4:14
The Christian theater studio “Sporeas” (from Greek, meaning “Sower”) has existed in the city of Dubno, in the Rivne region, for more than ten years. Since the New Life Church was organized on the basis of a kids’ club, the first shows were made specifically for day and stationary camps.
The proclamation of Christian truths through the actions of various characters and images was extremely interesting and important for the younger generation. Later, small productions began to occupy a special place in the festive services. Subsequently, full-size performances for both children and adults would fill the seats in churches. The scenery, costumes, lights, music – all this helped to portray the time and place of the events described.
During the theater existence, the audience had the opportunity to see excerpts from such works as The Brothers Karamazov by F. M. Dostoevsky, Les Miserables by V. Hugo, and the staging of the fairy tales The Happy Prince by O. Wilde and The Snow Queen by H. K. Anderson. Natasha Golovai, a screenwriter, stage and production director, and member of the New Life Church, wrote and staged such performances as The Shoemaker, Prince in Rags, Christmas Present, Gustav Bear, and Christ the Living Son of God. With some of these, the group visited the churches of Lutsk, Rivne, and several local villages.
In the camps, children would meet the characters of the famous work Pilgrim’s Progress by J. Bunyan as well as those from the performances written and adapted for the common themes of camps, namely The Wonderful Transformation, The Wise Party, Elya and Helya, The House of my Heart, and Ants the Builders.
The Lord gave an understanding of the importance of theater ministry throughout the years to both the leadership and the church members. Therefore, a common aspiration of theater-goers to ensure that performances reach a new level of professionalism every year has always been there.
The Ministry Today
Today, the theater ministry, which employs more than twenty people, is experiencing special blessings. People without special education, but who are dedicated and sacrificial, have a great desire to serve God. Over the years, a certain set of costumes, scenery, and lights were collected. All this is due to the same sacrificial hearts.
Last spring, the play Sewing Machine was shown in the New Life Church, which tells about the life of Christians in the period of the Communist regime. The script, based on real events, was written by Natasha Golovai. For the older generation, these are memories of their past experience, producing gratitude to God for freedom today. For the youth, this is history, and inspires the same gratitude to God for freedom. In addition to two shows in our church, Sewing Machine was also presented in the Revival Church, in the city of Kyiv. At this stage, we received a number of invitations from churches all over Ukraine.
Goals of the Ministry
The main goal that we have had, which continues today, is to sow Christian truths through the theater format, to reach the hearts of people, both believers and non-believers.
The goal for 2019 is to show the play Sewing Machine in many churches in Ukraine, as well as continue to create new works.
We need your prayer and financial support, and we will also be glad to see you in the audience hall at our performances.
