Paintingthe Sky Sophisticated Lighting and Video Technology Aid an Eye-Catching Christmas Prodnction at FBC Springdale "Our ultimate goal is to see people showing up to embrace Jesus Christ." says Zach Kennedy. The Director of Digital Media at the First Baptist church (FBC)of Springdale could be referring to any Christian church programming, but Kennedy is talking specificallyabout the Northwest Arkansas (NWA)Christmas Pageant. A successful Christmas pageant can have a tremendous impact as an outreach tool to spread the teachings of Jesus to community members beyond a church's existing congregation, But to touch people's hearts, you must first capture their imaginations, For 18 years FBCSpringdale has been drawing increasing numbers of worshippers in their region to watch what has become the largest Christmas production in the area, In 2004, FBCSpringdale held four performances of the NWAPageant. drawing 2.500 people for each show. More than 900 congregation members are involved in some aspect of the production. Associate Pastor of Worship Ministries, Buster Pray, who produces the pageant. doesn't underestimate the importance of involving congregation members in the show, "It's about more than just reaching people outside," he says. 18 CHURCHPROOUCTIONMAGAZINE NOV/OEC2005
{{Lightingis the key to the whole production. m call it painting the sky." - Buster Pray,associate pastor of worship ministries, First Baptist Church, Springdale, Arkansas Stewart agrees: "It's a joy to us, how it gets the people involved in the ministry. There are some key players on our team who handle big pieces of the puzzle, but it gives us great joy to know that much of this labor of love is done by a host of volunteers who literally change their lives for three to four months each fall to make this production possible. We all feel like a family." The show The 2004 NWAChristmas Pageant was a stunningly energetic sound. light and video extravaganza in three acts. Nearly every scene featured unique visual effects. from flyingangels courtesy of ZFXbased in Las Vegas.Nevada to awe-inspiring lighting displays. Traditional hymns were interspersed with festive carols to maintain an appealing pace. Chris Emert, associate minister of worship and instrumental director and arranger for First Baptist Church of Springdale. arranged all of the music for the pageant and recorded the click tracks used in the production. Extensive pre-produced video segments enhanced the message or helped transition between scenes. Act I and II are fun. festive seasonal treats to entertain and draw in the audience. The third act, however. is the key element to the production. This act depicts the life of Jesus. starting Photos this article courtesy of Stephen Thetford, David Merrifield, and Jerry Dickson. by Dawn Allcot Above: Acts I and II of the Christmas production are designed to draw the attendee's into a cheerful, receptive mood leading to Act III where the life and gospel of Jesus is presented. lighting design and color palette are selected to achieve these emotions. Right: ZFX of Las Vegas, Nevada provided the support needed to fly actors during the production. CHURCHPRODUCTIONMAGAZINE NOV/DEC2005
First Baptist Church of Springdale puts great effort into set design for their annual Christmas production, from the stone walk-ways to Jesus' tomb. The Technology While the importance of pacing and the musical selections cannot be underestimated, technology plays a key role in the production, as do the technical staff that puts it all together. "This church has always been on the cutting edge of technology," says Kennedy, "and we hope to stay there." with His birth and going forward through the crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. "The third act is really why we're there," Stewart says, echoing Kennedy's sentiments. "Our ultimate purpose is to let people know what God did for us, to share that story... So,we pump every bit of energy we have into that section." The FBCSpringdale staff starts thinking about the Christmas pageant in July, immediately following the summer production, titled the Summer Freedom Celebration. "We decompress for a bit," Pray says, "and then get to work on the Christmas production." While formal planning starts in July and the music is introduced immediately following Labor Day,Pray actually has the production on his mind year-round. "If I hear an idea, I write it down and put it in my pocket," he says, noting that he finds ideas everywhere. "We're not bashful. We'll borrow ideas... Then we adapt it and make it our own." Although they'll use elements borrowed from other productions, Anita Stewart says the church would never resort to using a pre-produced musical. Instead, Pray creates a show that features a huge variety of music. "He's always looking for something that will appeal to every age, every generation," Stewart says. "We're trying to attract everyone from the youngest child to the oldest senior adult." If there's a number someone doesn't like, Stewart guarantees worshippers won't have to wait more than one or two songs to hear something more appealing to their taste. "Buster is the 'king of flow,'" Stewart says, not hiding her respect and admiration for the associate pastor. "Youtake people to the top of the mountain, then you bring them down and let people rest." The church uses a custom-designed sound system by charles Grecco out of Nashville, Tennessee. Grecco designs and builds his own speakers and class D amplifiers for each project. The left-center-right (LCR)loudspeaker system was retro-fitted into the church several years ago, and Pray says it gives his technical staff the capabilities to do virtually anything they want, from a fullscale dramatic production to concerts and spoken word. Mid-bass frequencies are handled by dual self-powered line arrays, each loaded with six 12-inchwoofers loaded at 45-degree angles from each other. Mid and high frequencies run through point-source loudspeaker cabinets loaded with two sixinch drivers and one polyester compression driver. Greccofeels that polyester drivers have a more natural sound than titanium drivers. Due to the high ceiling in the sanctuary, front-fills were required to provide adequate coverage for the front rows of seating. Grecco's design includes continuous sections of large ribbon drivers which, he explains, in this configuration act as an enormously long line array. For sub-bass, the system includes eight dual18-inch subwoofers with sealed cabinet designs. Signalprocessing and matrix distribution are handled by a Soundweb 9088IIand a Soundweb 9008, providing eight-inputs 20 CHURCHPRODUCTIONMAGAZINE NOVjDEC2005
The final act of First Baptist Church of Springdale's Christmas production culminates in the crucifixion and ascension of Jesus, which conveys the full message of the good news of Jesus' birth. and 16-outputs. A 56-channel Amek Recalldesk meets the needs of the church's regular services and the Christmas production. Additionally. thirty-one wireless microphone packs are brought in for the Christmas production. Kennedy notes that wireless mic'ing is always a challenge, with 20 different people on stage at the same time, all speaking one or two lines. "Bythe third night of dress rehearsal. we developed a system, " he says. Careful planning and volunteers tracking the script as actors came off the stage helped ensure that everyone had the right mic at the right time. I Video systems consist of motorized screens, three Lightning 15SX12,000-lumen projectors from Digital Projection Systems, and five KYD29Wcameras and one KYD29Digital S camera from JVc. An Echolab 700video switcher with three MEs permits the operator to switch between screens. Brawner &Associates in Springfield, Missouri, is brought in to design and operate the lighting, which includes a four-truss lighting grid rented by the church specifically for the Christmas pageant. Donnie Brawner brings his technical team, which includes lighting director Ron Robertson and master electricians Dave Loftin and Dave Evans. The lengthy equipment list for the production includes 121 Par 64 cans, a variety of fixtures from ETCand Altman, Studio Spots, Litho Cyberlights, Studio Colors, 1ntellibeams and D50 hazers from High End Systems, Wybron Color Scrollers as well as the church's own gear.
Such a broad variety of fixtures, accord. ing to Brawner, helps the church make the transition from worship center to theatrical space-and back again. Brawner notes that a significant part of the project involved installing all of the rented equip. ment. integrating it with the church's existing fixtures, and still allowing the church to hold its regular services for three Sundays between the installation and the premiere of the pageant. "We can't just completely tear their existing systems apart:' he explains, "We designed a system that allows for all of our bells and whistles during the production. but lets the church holds its normal services. with video projection and everything they normally do." For churches that may not have the staff, space, or budget for huge, custom. designed sets or frequent set changes, lighting can create the right mood without a lot of physical changes to the stage. "Lighting is the key to the whole pageant," Pray says. "We call it painting the sky." As much as the lighting, set design. projection and sound work together to immerse audience members in the production. it's not all about technology, either. Pray has some straightforward advice for anyone planning a large-scale Christmas production. "Checkyour motives." he says. "Each year. we have to make sure we know why we're doing it. If we're doing it to reach our cities with a bright message of hope. then all the work is worth it." This was particularly important in the case of FBCSpringdale, says Brawner. who worked alongside the set designer to integrate the lighting with the physical scenery. "The church doesn't have the ability to totally change scenes behind curtains," he says. "They depend a lot on u! to put audience members into the scene with the lighting, Some fixtures may get used only once during the show, but they are crucial."... One example is during a scene in the third act that takes place by the Sea of Galilee. "The rest of the set is still on the stage:' Brawner explains, "so it has to be in the dark. The fog and haze and lighting make the rest of the set disappear. A lot of times, more important than what you are lighting is what you're not lighting."