This is very good. Acts 2 38
Showing posts with label theatre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label theatre. Show all posts
Saturday, March 21, 2026
Wednesday, August 3, 2022
GLORIFYING GOD (NOT ME) WITH MY GIFTS
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
— Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
An interview with Trish Tough: a TBL Volunteer Narrator
I'd rather have Jesus than worldly applause
I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause
I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame
Yes, I'd rather be true to His holy name
— “I’d Rather Have Jesus” by Rhea Miller / George Beverly Shea
Trish Tough studied theatre arts in a Montreal university as she wanted to be an actress for all the glory she could attain - attention, fame, wealth, popularity, and the feeling of celebrity stardom. Yet God had another plan for her when she became a Christian during her second year of her three-year theatre arts program. She moved to Toronto after completing the program to pursue an acting career and received few minor roles after many auditions. Slowly God transformed and convicted her, and she would not act in or even audition for ungodly scenes or be dressed in outfits that were previously “alright” for her. After a long struggle, she decided not to pursue her dreams of becoming an actress as her career. Being a young Christian (and the only one in her family) and losing her dream was frightening.
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.
For fear has to do with punishment,
and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
— 1 John 4:18
This verse reminded her that God’s love is perfect and all she had to do was to trust Him. Instead of acting on stage, she worked as a receptionist at a company that produced radio and TV commercials. She was later in charge of the voice-over audition library there. Soon after, God blessed her with a role of being a full-time mother to three lovely daughters. Her new goal was to be a godly wife and mother for her family, to help them take root in biblical truth. Prior to COVID, her family would serve at her previous home church in Newmarket in various ministries, one of which was the drama ministry where shows with songs and gospel messages were written and produced for both believers and non-believers. It was a joy for Trish to serve God and it satisfied her acting bugs for almost twenty years.
One day, her church friend who was also a member of the Board of Directors at the Talking Book Library introduced to her the organization. With her experience in voice recording from the commercial company, she was immediately drawn to TBL’s mission and volunteered as a narrator after an audition at the office. One of the books that she narrated, George Beverly Shea: Tell Me the Story by Paul Davis, had a tremendous impact on her. Shea’s autobiography contained so many enriching thoughts for reflections that it took her one year to complete narration. Trish had personally learned much from Shea that she would read and re-read a section, praying that God would help her express Shea’s story that had moved her so that the same story can touch another person’s life as well. She was particularly encouraged at how Shea was very clear on God’s purpose for him, which was to use his singing talents to prepare people’s heart to receive God’s message preached through Billy Graham. Shea understood well that to sing on stage in front of the mass audience was not for his own glory but for God’s glory. In a similar way, Trish was comforted to know from Shea’s life that she was more blessed to give up her dream of becoming an actress on a secular stage for personal fame in order to pursue God’s ministry plans for her for His glory. As in the song “I’d Rather Have Jesus”, composed by George Beverly Shea, staying true to Jesus’ name is a higher calling than to achieve worldly applause and fame. Over the years, Trish has wholly experienced what was written in Jeremiah 29:11 — “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Whether it is through the church drama ministry or book narration, Trish is thankful that God uses her gift of being able to translate written words into emotion for someone else to hear the message. To Trish, God wants to transform people’s lives through His words, whether we are hearing or reading it. The Bible is alive, and it is wonderful to witness its fruits lived out by people in contemporary stories that are relevant to us. Trish prays that those who are visually impaired will be surrounded by God-fearing and spirit-led believers who will show them from the Bible that they are fearfully and wonderfully made. After all, God loves them and has a purpose for them too!
Saturday, January 11, 2014
BAGGAGE CLAIM
Local Christian theatre group put on a good performance tonight of their latest production, "Baggage Claim."
This musical is a modern-day parable of a family taking a New Year's vacation.
Gillian Folley turned in a good performance as Irene, the leading lady. The other actors also did an excellent job.
Overall, it was a wonderful play. However, the plot did where a bit thin in the middle portion. Some further explanation of some points regarding the parable aspect would have been helpful as well. Still, this was a play worth seeing.
This musical is a modern-day parable of a family taking a New Year's vacation.
Gillian Folley turned in a good performance as Irene, the leading lady. The other actors also did an excellent job.
Overall, it was a wonderful play. However, the plot did where a bit thin in the middle portion. Some further explanation of some points regarding the parable aspect would have been helpful as well. Still, this was a play worth seeing.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
TILLY
Tonight I went to a dessert social that was a fundraiser for our local crisis pregnancy centre. The Quinte Youth Alliance put on the play Tilly, based on the novel of the same name by Frank Perreti.
The actors did an excellent job. They knew their lines perfectly and the performance went off without a hitch. The play tells a good story and has a message or two that needs to be heard.
The story is about Cathy Ross, a woman who goes to a funeral and sees a woman weeping at a grave with the name Tilly etched on the tombstone. The proverbial biscuit is dipped in the tea and all Cathy's memories come flooding back. Cathy and her husband Dan eventually learn that Tilly is the name of the baby Cathy aborted nine years earlier. The woman at the abortion clinic gave her a funeral.
While the performance and the basic story are good, I have a problem with some aspects of this story.
First and foremost, the plot is very underdeveloped. The novel itself is only 126 pages. The characters are not given time to develop and the reasons for why they did what they did are never clear. From a literary standpoint, it should have been a much longer novel, taking us back to when Cathy got pregnant and leading up to the time nine years in the future when the events of the novel take place. Additionally, Perreti should have devoted part of the novel to telling the back story of Anita Mendoza, the woman at the abortion clinic, as well as that of the woman at the funeral home.
Second, there are too many loose ends. It's never clear whether Cathy and Dan are Christians. Cathy mentions that she used to sing "Jesus Loves Me" to her kids when they were little. This would seem to indicate that she has been a Christian for a number of years, but if she was a Christian at the time she became pregnant with Tilly, why did she have the abortion? It's never explicitly stated what the Ross's spiritual standing is.
Also, Anita Mendoza is the woman who worked at the abortion clinic. She had her pastor perform the ceremony for Tilly. It's indicated, in the play at least, that Mendoza was a new Christian. If she was a Christian, why was she working at the abortion clinic? I assume that she had just recently become a Christian and was trying to get out of her job there, but whether this is the case or not is never made clear.
Cathy eventually discovers that Tilly and God have forgiven her for aborting Tilly, but whether Cathy becomes a Christian or not is never revealed. What happens to her? Does she go on to lead a Christian life?
Most importantly, we are never clearly told why Cathy aborted Tilly in the first place. After the play, the director of the crisis pregnancy centre said that in the novel, it said that Cathy and Dan didn't want to have any more children. However, from the reviews I've read on Amazon, this isn't made clear in the novel.
Third, the characters are not developed (because the plot is not developed.) As I said above, there needed to be a lot more of a back story.
On a positive note, the story does contain some messages that need to be heard, particularly that abortion hurts everybody. The woman feels guilty for years and the other people involved feel hurt by it, too.
The actors did an excellent job. They knew their lines perfectly and the performance went off without a hitch. The play tells a good story and has a message or two that needs to be heard.
The story is about Cathy Ross, a woman who goes to a funeral and sees a woman weeping at a grave with the name Tilly etched on the tombstone. The proverbial biscuit is dipped in the tea and all Cathy's memories come flooding back. Cathy and her husband Dan eventually learn that Tilly is the name of the baby Cathy aborted nine years earlier. The woman at the abortion clinic gave her a funeral.
While the performance and the basic story are good, I have a problem with some aspects of this story.
First and foremost, the plot is very underdeveloped. The novel itself is only 126 pages. The characters are not given time to develop and the reasons for why they did what they did are never clear. From a literary standpoint, it should have been a much longer novel, taking us back to when Cathy got pregnant and leading up to the time nine years in the future when the events of the novel take place. Additionally, Perreti should have devoted part of the novel to telling the back story of Anita Mendoza, the woman at the abortion clinic, as well as that of the woman at the funeral home.
Second, there are too many loose ends. It's never clear whether Cathy and Dan are Christians. Cathy mentions that she used to sing "Jesus Loves Me" to her kids when they were little. This would seem to indicate that she has been a Christian for a number of years, but if she was a Christian at the time she became pregnant with Tilly, why did she have the abortion? It's never explicitly stated what the Ross's spiritual standing is.
Also, Anita Mendoza is the woman who worked at the abortion clinic. She had her pastor perform the ceremony for Tilly. It's indicated, in the play at least, that Mendoza was a new Christian. If she was a Christian, why was she working at the abortion clinic? I assume that she had just recently become a Christian and was trying to get out of her job there, but whether this is the case or not is never made clear.
Cathy eventually discovers that Tilly and God have forgiven her for aborting Tilly, but whether Cathy becomes a Christian or not is never revealed. What happens to her? Does she go on to lead a Christian life?
Most importantly, we are never clearly told why Cathy aborted Tilly in the first place. After the play, the director of the crisis pregnancy centre said that in the novel, it said that Cathy and Dan didn't want to have any more children. However, from the reviews I've read on Amazon, this isn't made clear in the novel.
Third, the characters are not developed (because the plot is not developed.) As I said above, there needed to be a lot more of a back story.
On a positive note, the story does contain some messages that need to be heard, particularly that abortion hurts everybody. The woman feels guilty for years and the other people involved feel hurt by it, too.
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