Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School November 2019 Mini-Actors, Mega-Stages: Examining the Use of Theatre among Children and Youth in U.S. Evangelical Megachurches Carla Elisha Lahey Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory Commons, and the Other Theatre and Performance Studies Commons Recommended Citation Lahey, Carla Elisha, "Mini-Actors, Mega-Stages: Examining the Use of Theatre among Children and Youth in U.S. Evangelical Megachurches" (2019). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 5101. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/5101 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. MINI-ACTORS, MEGA-STAGES: EXAMINING THE USE OF THEATRE AMONG CHILDREN AND YOUTH IN U.S. EVANGELICAL MEGACHURCHES A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The School of Theatre by Carla Elisha Lahey B.A., Samford University, 2000 M.S., Florida State University, 2012 December 2019 Acknowledgements For the past three years of this project, I have been dreaming of writing this page. Graduate school has not the easiest path, but many people walked along the road with me. I have looked forward to completing this project so I could thank them within the pages they helped to make possible. I never imagined myself pursuing a PhD, at least not until I started the Master’s in Theatre for Theatre Educators program at Florida State University. My FSU cohort – Britani, Dee, Betty, Jason, Madelin, and Marielva – walked alongside me through three theatre-filled Tallahassee summers, and they were some of the first to encourage me to continue my education after we stepped across the FSU stage together. After my final summer at FSU, Aaron Thomas provided mentorship as I walked through the PhD program application process. Although I didn’t know it at the time, the seeds of this project were planted decades ago. Growing up, I participated in musicals at my church; these productions served as my introduction to the world of theatre. Linda Highsmith spent many years directing the children’s productions at Hogan Baptist, selflessly sacrificing her time to teach us about God through songs and dialogue. As I got older, Forrest Head and Chris Ferger served as both my youth ministers and choir directors. Not only did they teach me about performance, they also changed my life by teaching me how to have a relationship with God. This project involved quite a bit of travel to visit performance sites. I want to extend gratitude to the LSU School of Theatre and LSU Graduate School for travel grants that helped make this research possible. And a special note of thanks to the ministry leaders from Harvest Christian Fellowship, Pathway Church, Bellevue Baptist Church, Calvary Community Church, First Baptist Church Jacksonville, Saddleback Church, the Peninsular Florida Fine Arts Festival, ii and Christian Youth Theatre, who personally welcomed me into their worship spaces to learn more about how theatre works in a church setting. The passion you have for your calling and ministry was evident, and the genuine interest you demonstrated in my research inspired me to push forward in this work. The members of Christians in Theatre Arts also offered assistance as I worked through this project. I attended my first CITA networking meeting at SETC during the first year of my PhD program, and I instantly knew I walked into something special. The attendees at that annual meeting provided encouragement as I pursued this work, suggested articles and books to read, and were eager to suggest potential research sites. Likewise, the faculty, staff, and students at Hesston College played a role in helping this project move toward completion. They encouraged me through the last year of their project and extended grace as I worked to balance writing and editing with my faculty/staff responsibilities. My fellow PhD students at LSU made the graduate school journey a lot less lonely. Through our seminars, Alexis, Katie, Ben, Colleen, and Rachel challenged me to consider different ways of thinking. Macy Jones was always willing to help each new class adjust to life at LSU. And Evleen Nasir served as my sounding board and texting encourager throughout the final stages of this project. My fellow graduate student and roommate Julie was one of the biggest blessings during my time at LSU. Julie became a great friend and served as the voice of reason through graduate school’s inevitable stressful moments, helping me to keep life in perspective. She also suggested my first research site – Prestonwood Baptist – which is located in her hometown. The faculty has been one of my very favorite aspects of LSU. Alan Sikes, Femi Euba, John Fletcher, and Shannon Walsh not only care about their students as scholars, but they also iii care about them as individuals. Gaines Foster, Aaron Sheehan-Dean, and Andrew Burstein welcomed me into the history department and, through their classes, provided me with tools that impact the way I think as a theatre historian. Shannon Walsh, Gaines Foster, and Stan Barrera also served on my dissertation committee. I am appreciative of the time they spent providing such thoughtful feedback to make this project better. John Fletcher served as my dissertation advisor for this project. Getting to learn from John, given his expertise in the area of evangelical performance, was one of the main reasons I wanted to study theatre at LSU. I cannot express enough gratitude for the role John played as mentor, advisor, and professor during my time in the graduate program at LSU. Throughout the dissertation writing process, John offered valuable critique, asked challenging questions, suggested new avenues to consider, and pushed me to deeper, more critical thinking through each chapter. My friends and family provided constant support through this project. My college friends Jen, Julie, Sara, and Kerrie kept me going with encouraging and well-timed texts. My sisters, Amy and Pam, consistently challenged and inspired me to keep pressing forward. And I would still be sitting at a computer somewhere in the middle of Kansas typing an unfinished dissertation if it wasn’t for my parents, Carldon and Becky Lahey. They supported me in every way imaginable through this project – through financial support, prayer, and precious words of encouragement. They believe in me even when I doubt myself, and they consistently demonstrate unconditional love. Lastly, at times, I wondered if I would be able to finish strong. To the One “who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,” thank You for the strength, passion, and faith to follow this project through to completion. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements………...………………………………………………………………….…..ii Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………...vi Introduction……………………………………………..……………..…………………………..1 Chapter 1. Sunday Morning Stages: Incorporating Performance into Children’s Worship Services…………………...……………………………………………………………...29 Chapter 2. Creating a Spectacle: Children, Teens, and Large-Scale Megachurch Productions………………………………………………………………………...…….55 Chapter 3. Generation Z Takes Centerstage: Children and Youth Drama Teams.………………84 Chapter 4. An Unlikely Sanctuary: Church-Based Performing Arts Academies.…….………..110 Conclusion………………..………………………………………………………….…………132 Works Cited…………………………………………………………………………………….147 Vita……………………………………………………………………………………………...166 v Abstract How do children and youth first encounter the performing arts? While schools may stand out as an obvious answer, a recent study conducted by the U.S. Department of Education shows that the percentage of public schools offering theatre classes dropped at both the primary and secondary level from 2000-2010 (Brenchley). Yet, even as arts offerings experience a decline in some public schools, many students are being introduced to performance through another venue – the evangelical megachurch. Since the birth of the church growth movement in the 1970s, megachurches (defined as Protestant congregations that average at least 2,000 weekly attendees) have integrated drama and stage technology into worship services as a way to maintain cultural relevance in their target communities. These tools have also impacted the way megachurches approach their ministry to children and teens. In this dissertation, I seek to integrate research from the fields of evangelical performance and Theatre for Young Audiences to examine the way churches use theatre as a tool for discipleship and evangelism among their youngest attendees. By visiting evangelical megachurches, observing performances, and meeting with ministerial staff and arts educators from Christian arts programs around the U.S., I examine the way children function as both actors and audience members in weekly educational meetings, large-scale theatrical spectacles, children and youth drama teams, as well as church-based performing arts academies. Through these programs, children not only learn theology but also become active evangelists