Competition Testimonial Emails

I have had many reports of drama teams winning competitions using our skits, and even competing against other teams also using material from our site. I imagine the judges at these events must be getting very familiar with my stuff! Here is another great email from a young lady testifying to this kind if thing...

Fred,

My name is Rebekah Dunbar and I am 17 years old, and live in Arkansas. I attend First Freewill Baptist Church and every year my drama team competes in a National Youth Conference that our denomination puts on.

Two years ago I came across your site when looking for a drama for us to compete with, and found so many skits that related to that year's theme and made it easy to work with and memorize for performing. That summer we used the Bubble Wrap skit which was a huge hit, we won district and made it all the way to Nationals where we competed and won! Following the performance we had multiple churches ask where we came up with the idea and if we could come and perform it for their home church. Of course we directed them all to your website where we ended up competing against some of the churches that we gave your reference to that summer.

This past year, we used "The Crate Escape." We did edit multiple parts to fit the conference theme and time regulations but in the end, we won Nationals for the second year! Again, we had multiple people come and ask us where we came up with the great skit idea and if we would perform it for their chuch. We were even asked to visit some church camps where we had the opportunity to perform and work with students our own age, that we talked to and had the chance to share our testimonies and tell them about our personal walk with Christ.

I don't want to take up too much of your time but I wanted to thank you for doing what you do. I think all of the skits on the site are interesting and modernized which is sometimes hard to find for a church competition. This upcoming year we will most likely be using another one of your scripts to compete with. Our drama team could not have performed as well without the basis of the skits put on your site. Again, thank you and I pray that God blesses you and your site.

In Christ, Rebekah Dunbar

Here are links to the skits she referred to: "The Wrap Group" and "The Crate Escape."

Here is another recent email along these lines:

Dear Fred,

The Grace Baptist Christian School will be using your script "The Sheep"s Clothing Store" on March 30th in a Student Convention competition.

We are a small Christian school in South Ga. and compete in Student Convention with Schools from North Georgia, Florida and Alabama. Our students have been performing your skits for the past 6 years. In performing these skits they placed 1st in everyone of them! We appreciate the gospel that is provided in these skits. We appreciate all that has been written.

-Wanda Vice
Tifton, GA

I found this bit of conversation below on a message board at this home school debate site: http://homeschooldebate.com/ The particular page with the following post no longer exists, but here is part of the message I saw about scripts they have used in competitions from ChristianSkitScripts.com. Interesting stuff! I don't know what all the abbreviations are for, except "HI" stands for "Humorous Interpretation."

...an author that I've heard four/five pieces from that are really incredibly cute is Fred Passmore. He wrote the winning duo piece (Carillo/Carillo), the winning and third place OI piece (Gabby Elliot and Sam Nasser), and the second-place HI piece (Marshall Sherman) at the Regional tournament this last weekend.

If you can find one of his pieces that isn't being done... then it's a great idea... make sure you follow the directions before taking the script though. The pieces that are taken are: "The Great Church Robbery," "Battle of the Sexes: Round One," "The Man with the Shellfish Heart," "Mama's Close Call," "Testimony Show." Every one of the above pieces has placed at one or more tourneys. "The Battle of the Sexes: Round One," is done by Carrillo/Carrillo, and they have gotten first place at every Texas tourney this year, except for the ASAP, (Weatherford) practice tourney in November of last year. And that was because they didn't have the duo's at that tournemant.

"Testimony Show," which is done by Carrillo/Elliott, has placed third in Houston for the practice tourney, and third in Dallas, at the Pre-Regional Q. "Mama's Close Call," done by Michelle Carrillo of Carrillo/Elliott, has been the first place HI ever since it came on the scene, in Corpus Christi, and again here in Dallas at the Pre-Q. My piece, "The Man with the Shellfish Heart," has placed second in Houston for the practice tourney, and again here in Dallas it placed second. And "the Great Church Robbery," done by Samantha Nasser (my debate partner) has only been on the scene for the Dallas Pre-Regional Q, and placed fourth in OI.

So Fred Passmore's stuff is good. He has winning pieces in almost every IE, except DI. He has two pieces in HI, first and second place, I might add; the consistently winning and almost-as-consistent third place duo, and a fourth place OI.

-Marshall Sherman

That just blows my mind. Go to the site for these and more winning skit scripts!

Yet Another "Cardboard Christ" Video!

I've found another couple of YouTube videos of people doing my skit script "The Guy With The Cardboard Christ," the script for which you can get here for free. This one is very well done...

View the skit on Youtube here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeItNo-rk4w

And here's the first part of another team's performance. Don't know why they didn't post the whole thing, I would like to see it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrgIladPlX0&feature=related

Get that skit and more at http://www.christianskitscripts.com/!

Skit Spotlight: "The Audition"

Every so often I'll be highlighting a particular skit from my site ChristianSkitScripts.com, when I feel like it's the right time. Today we are looking at the skit titled "The Audition." Wanting to cross over into secular entertainment, a Christian actor tries out for the role of an action hero in a major motion picture. Torn between his standards and the desire to get the role, the aspiring "new Eastwood" finds that being a crossover artist puts him on the wrong side of the fence. Lasting about 10 minutes, and using three people (with one offstage on a mic), this skit is easy to do, and is a powerful witness about the price of compromise.

After being put through his paces in several types of situations to see how the actor can handle them, each one comically depicting typical Hollywood tropes, the hopeful actor stumbles when he is required to read profanity from the script in one dramatic scene. He protests, and draws the ire of the producer conducting the audition. Here is an excerpt from that scene:

Jake: To be honest, Mr. O'Neal, I'm... uncomfortable with some of the language in it. I thought that I could just substitute something less offensive and still get the meaning across.

Producer: The swearing has to stay, to make the scene work. Your character isn't a Boy Scout, he's a seasoned field agent. Now read it again, with the lines done right.

Jake: (Reluctantly, he starts again.) "Hold it right there, Brock. What's this... what's this..."
(He stops and lowers the script.)

Producer: What's the problem, Jake?

Jake: I'm sorry, I just can't do the lines with all the cursing in it. I don't use that kind of language in my life, and I can't bring myself to do it on camera with everyone watching. If I play a hero, the kids watching will imitate me, and I don't want to be responsible for that.

(Irwin has lowered his script in amazement as he hears this.)

Producer: (After a moment's silence.) You're... you're kidding me, right? (Laughs.) Yeah, you're kidding, showing me you can do comedy! (Chuckles.) That's funny stuff. But this scene isn't supposed to be funny. Now let's try again. Really let loose on him and show him you mean business!

Jake: I do mean business, Mr. O'Neal. I'd prefer not to do it with the swearing and blasphemy.

Producer: (Unbelieving.) This guy sounds serious. Is he serious, Irwin?

Irwin: (Turning toward the light.) I think he is, Mr. O'Neal.

Producer: I don't believe this. What are you, a Ward Cleaver or something? This audition ain't for a Superman movie, it's for Lone Wolf. He's tough, a man's man.

Jake: I have no objections against playing a tough man. One of the toughest men ever portrayed in the movies was done without saying a single dirty word. Remember Jesus in his recent record-breaking movie?

Producer: Jesus? (It dawns on him.) You're a Christian.

Jake: Yes, sir, I am.

Producer: (Under his breath.) Mohammad on a Moped! Why don't they screen these people better than this? (To Jake.) Look, kid, you got the look for a leading man in Hollywood. You carry yourself well and you could go far with the right contacts. But all the contacts in the world won't help, if you won't take a role just because you have some personal moral objection to it. You might as well forget about making it in this town with that attitude.

Jake: So you're telling me there are no movie producers with morality? You have personal morals, don't you?
(Irwin makes a sarcastic "p-h-h-t-t-t" sound through his lips as if amused.)

Producer: (Sharply.) Yes, Mr. Do-Right, I have morals, they just happen to be different from yours.

Irwin: (Snickers under his breath.) You can say that again.

Producer: (Darkly.) I heard that, Irwin.

Jake: Besides, Mr. O'Neal, it's not just the language. I was having trouble with the violence and sexual promiscuity the hero, so-called, endorses by his lifestyle. I can't go against my convictions.

Producer: Mr. Sheldon, thanks for...

Jake: Shelby.

Producer: Yeah, whatever. Thanks for coming to the audition. We'll look at your tape, and if the director thinks you have potential, you'll get a call-back. But personally, I wouldn't lose any sleep waiting for one. Thank you. Good day. Irwin, bring on the next one.

Jake: Now just a second. Let me get this straight... you're dismissing me just because I'm not a foul-mouthed, unprincipled heathen like most of the other actors around here? What about talent? Doesn't it count for anything any more?

(End of the excerpt.) By the end of the skit, Jake realizes his calling lies in a different direction, but one that can still use his talents. As he leaves, confident in his decision, the stage hand follows after him, wanting to know more about a life that can be led with integrity and such joy. The producer, left alone, goes into a fit which triggers a heart palpitation. The skit ends with him calling for help, but there is no-one around to hear him.

There is a soundtrack CD to go with it to supply the many sound effects needed, and will make it much funnier and effective. Preview it on the script page, or just click here.

Your actors and audience will enjoy this skit, which can be done with the script in hand, as this is written into the scene, as part of the audition. So go here to read and print out the entire free script right now!

Here is one testimonial email from a person that used it:
Fred,

We performed "The Audition" on May 1st, at our Awana Awards Banquet at the Cornerstone Community Church in Auburn, CA.

Thank you so much for putting your site together and offering scripts with a powerful message. "The Audition" was incredible. I am no actor, yet even I was able to prepare and deliver the lines because most lines had cues from other actors. Very easy to perform!

Thanks again and God bless you.

-Bill Harben
Awana Commander
Cornerstone Community Church
Auburn, CA.

Soundtrack CD Previews

On my main site, ChristianSkitScripts.com, I have 15 soundtrack CDs for sale (so far) that supply the music and sound effects for the free scripts found there. While most are of the type where you do you own dialog from the script and use the music and sounds when the script prompts, some are of the narrated variety, for those skits that are done in my unique "Play/Act" format. For these, there are no lines to learn, as the dialog is related by the narrator on the CD.

Now, my regular and return customers don't need to be convinced as to the quality and effectiveness of these CDs... they know how professional and useful they are and come back for more (check out the Testimonials Page and see how often the soundtracks are praised). However, for those first-time visitors to the site that love the scripts, but would like to have a preview of the CDs before buying, I am now posting just that for their convenience!

I'm in the middle of the project, and have produced and posted audio previews of 10 so far, and I will keep on until every CD can be previewed. On the audio previews I go over each track, and let the prospective buyer hear a few seconds of each one, so they'll be able to be confident about what they are getting. Each script that has a soundtrack preview has a link in it to listen to it.

Here are the ones posted so far in Windows Media audio format; click the "preview" link on each to listen. Click the script title link to read the script.

Preview of Soundtrack CD #1 for: "Live From The Battlefield" and "Assignment: Witness!"

Preview of Soundtrack CD #2 for: "Attack Of The Monster Tongue" and "Testimony Show."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #4 for: "Battle of the Sexes: Round One" and "Mama's Close Call."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #5 for: "The Telltale Talent" and "The Red Tie Club."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #6 for: "Jerusalem's Most Wanted."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #7 for: "Creature In The Closet" and "The Deejay's Dilemma."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #8 for: "The Audition" and "The Pastor's Barbeque"

Preview of Soundtrack CD #10 for: "The Crate Escape" and "How To Be Spiritually Fit."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #12 for: "The Trials of Rev. Milton Blumquist" and "War Of The Wills."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #13 for: "The Jokers Of Jericho" and "A Midnight Dreary."

Preview of Soundtrack CD #14 for: "Redemption In The Wings."

Preview of the Supplemental Skit Trax CD for a dozen of the skits that don't need much more than a few tracks each (see the complete list of scripts supported here).

Mother's Day Skits

It's nearly time again for skits that focus on Mother's Day, and we have two that have been very popular in recent years... check them out! First is "Mama's Close Call." Your congregation will enjoy these humorous skits!

Written for Mother's Day, but good any time, this skit will have everyone in stitches! Mama, settling in for a nice quiet evening with her TV, gets more excitement than she bargained for -or wanted- when her writer son drops in. Getting all choked up -literally- over his tribute to mothers, Mama wonders: will she ever get to watch her movie, or will she end up in the hospital? A hysterical 8-10 minute sketch with a heart! Click here to read it!

(Click here for a version of the script for an all-female cast, with the son part changed to a daughter.)

"Mama Knows Best!" Now available, a Mother's Day version of the skit "How To Be Spiritually Fit," featuring the same characters from the incredibly popular "Mama's Close Call!" When Mama's son Little Louie buys a "do-it-yourself" spiritual fitness program for her, things don't go as he planned. Click here to read this hysterical script!

(Also available in a FEMALE-ONLY cast version!) With a few obvious slight revisions, this could make a good Father's Day script as well!

UPDATE: Read some of the great comments below to see what people are saying about these two skits!

Another Christmas Drama reference and a Testimonial

Found this reference to my newest Christmas drama on a search site, here. Someone had posted a question about finding a Christmas drama, and someone answered with this...

"My favorite of this site is the drama ‘Redemption in the Wings’. This particular play not only has the traditional manger scene, but it also encompasses homelessness, salvation, forgiveness and reconciliation between father and daughter. I would definitely recommend this play for any church that was putting on a production for the first time because there are no speaking parts. That gives the actors a chance to get used to acting, without the added burden of learning lines." http://www.christianskitscripts.com/

Nice, I appreciate it! Add this to an earlier post with a letter from someone that did the play and had great success, and you get the idea it might be a good one for your church to do this year.

Update: here is an email I got today that reported how their church's performance of "Redemption In The Wings" went!

Fred,

Our little church very successfully performed "Redemption In The Wings" thanks to your help and God's. It took just about every regular church member but our cast was perfect, just as if you had written the play specifically for us. It became a play within a play within a play as even our cast members were ministered to and affected by the powerful message of forgiveness and redemption. The tears and the laughter were real that night.

We rented an old movie theater that had been converted into a drama theater; it couldn't have looked more like a homeless shelter even if we tried. We used the theater's sound system and stage lighting and we pulled back the curtains to reveal the wings. The place was packed and those who came expecting the same old Mary-Joseph-shepherds-nativity story were both surprised and in awe.

People are still talking about the play. In fact, they want us to perform again so that it can be recorded for the shut-ins of our church and our community. There were even wonderful comments about the professionally done sound recording on the CD we got from you.

Thanks so much for all you put into your work. Thanks also for the extra advice and being willing to help. God bless you and your work.

Sincerely,
Mandy Martin
Overcomers World Church
Woodstock, Georgia

'Mama Knows Best" Performance Pics

Recently I found some photos posted online by a church that did my script "Mama Knows Best!"

The performance was by the Barbara A. Davis Drama Ministry at the Union Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, located in Randallstown, Maryland.

The Characters and Assistant for the play were:

Mama -- Sis. Crystal Fasion
Louise -- Sis. Sakeena Rogers
Sound -- Bro. Bill Smith
Stage Design -- Bro. Randy Williams
Production Managr -- Sis. Beverly Davis

Director -- Bro. Lennox Graham
Secretary -- Sis. Beverly Davis
Asst. Secretary -- Sis. Sakeena Rogers
Chaplain -- Bro. Bill Smith

Looks like they did a good job and had a good time according to the photos! A report from one of the members said that everyone really enjoyed it, also.

Mama gets a call from daughter Louise.

Louise shows her a new purchase designed to save time and promote spiritual fitness.

Mama tries to tell her that this "Spiritual Fitness Kit" is a waste of time and money.

Seeing the futility, Mama tells Louise to go ahead and follow the workout directions on the tape and see where it gets her.

Louise dons the kit's badge of spiritual fitness.

Louise follows the taped directions to enhance her self-image.

The workout trainer's voice teaches Louise about self-discipline.

After a stress-related meltdown, Louise is comforted by Mama.

Mama shares the true path to spiritual fitness.

The actors receive a standing ovation for their performance.

The complete photo album can be viewed here. If you would like to do the skit yourself, like many others have, then read it here on the official skit site!