About the Performance Arts Ministry
The Performance Arts Ministry’s vision is to touch Christian and pre-believer’s hearts with God’s message. We aim to build stronger relationships between
1) Deeper Life Christian Centre ministries by providing the platform for collaborative service to minister God’s message through performance;
2) Deeper Life Christian Centre and its members by providing opportunities to familiarise themselves with other members, and DLCC ministry work.
The DLCC Performance Arts Ministry uses various genres of performance to deliver meaningful messages to encourage and edify the Church and its guests. These genres include skits, musicals, shadow play, and music & movement.
We have a core team – headed by Michelle – that is collectively responsible for directing, performing, producing, choreographing, backstage operations and most importantly, liaison with other DLCC ministries to explore opportunities for collaboration.
Questions for the ministry:
Q: What are the challenges for the Performance Arts Ministry?
Our key priority is to produce meaningful performances that effectively minister God’s Word and Love into the hearts and spirit of the audience. However, it is a challenge to think of new ways to convey the message from a different perspective as most of our members are familiar with God’s work and word.
As you know, God’s Word is dynamic and we need to be spiritually mature and familiar with His Word before we can receive the revelation to gain that “different perspective”. So I guess another challenge for the ministry is to be faithfully prayerful and familiar with the Word.
Q: How is the Performance Arts Ministry structured? Or How much time do I need to spend in this ministry?
Our Core team, they spend quite a bit of time conceptualising each production, drafting the script, sourcing for performers – basically turning an idea into reality. We haven’t actually measured the time needed as we do all these in our own time within the deadline.
There is another group of collaborators that we term “Volunteers” who join us on a project basis and are not a part of the ministry’s core team. These Volunteers contribute in the areas of performance, music, backstage and multimedia. Commitment to the project would be confined to the rehearsal and performance dates. Depending on the production size, it could range from 6 -14 rehearsals.
Q: How are your productions developed?
Most of our productions are developed by the core team, with a few being adaptations of performances that have a proven record of effective ministering.
To develop original productions, we find it easier to start with a song and then to build the story around it. Sometimes we add more songs into the production, thereby turning the production into a “Dra-Musical” which we did in 2010 called “Redemption | Thanksgiving”. But for Easter 2012, we put up a shadow play “Sacrifice” where the narration was written by the ministry from the perspective of God on the sacrifice of Jesus. For this production, we started with the theme of Sacrifice, wrote the narration and then got our musically talented members to play original accompanying music to raise production value.
As for adaptations or reproductions, we always get a “heads up” by church members or leaders to “check out” certain performances that have been uploaded online.
Q: How are rehearsals conducted?
Rehearsals are conducted with “fellowship and fun in Christ” in mind. To achieve this, we maximise the opportunity for laughter and harmless jibbing during “scene goofs”.
Operationally, our group of performers, the director, musicians (where necessary) get together at a pre-appointed place and time. We always open the rehearsal with worship and prayer to invite God’s Presence and to guide the rehearsal. Then the Director will do a walkthrough of the rehearsal objectives, and then we will commence the rehearsal proper. At the end of the rehearsal, we close in prayer.
Generally, rehearsals are efficiently run due to our consciousness of “other people’s time”.
Q: How old do I have to be to serve in the ministry?
Like all other ministries in DLCC, the minimum age to join the ministry is 16 human years.
Q: Do I need to have performing arts talent or experience to be a part of the ministry?
The only requirement for this ministry is a sincere heart and committed schedule to serve God. Also, it would be preferred that you pray and seek God’s approval to participate in the ministry.
Q: I have stage fright but I would really like to contribute in some way. Can I join the ministry?
Sure! If performing on stage is not your cup of tea, you might enjoy serving with our stage crew where we see the “real action” behind the scenes – actors doing “quick (role) changes”, props being propped up and moved away in super-speed, activation of lights and special effects (SFX), amongst many other important duties.
Q: I love colouring people’s faces and creating dramatic looks. Do you have a makeup team that I can join?
In DLCC, makeup is a creative art and therefore falls under the purview of the Creative Arts Ministry. You might want to swing over to that page to find out more about it. The performance arts ministry focuses on the performance side of things.
Please click on the video below to view our presentation – A CHRISTIAN’S WALK :
Sunday 14 July 2019
