All-age Sketches for the Christian Year

Each of these short sketches requires a handful of actors, simple costumes and everyday proprs. Entertaining and thought-provoking, the sketches will appeal to all ages and cover a number of special occasions through the year, including Christmas, Mother's Day and Harvest. The book also contains a short practical guide to performing each drama. Ideal for injecting fun into church services, the sketches are also suitable for outreach events, youth work, children's camps and church weekends away.

Currently a writer for YMCA England, Peter Shaw has an extensive background in drama both in and outside the Church. He has a Masters Degree in Playwriting from Goldsmiths College, and has had a number of plays performed including a piece selected for the 2001 International Playwriting Festival at the Warehouse Theatre in Croydon, and a romantic comedy, Love at First, which toured in Surrey and West London in 2002, and was revived for the 2003 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

From: The Church Times 7 March 2008

All-Age Sketches for the Christian Year are written by Peter Shaw. The book contains 20 short dramas, each associated with a Christian festival, or an event in church life such as Christian Aid week. None of the dramas need more than four performers; and a brief introduction to each gives the biblical background, sermon ideas, and staging hints.

From: The Methodist Recorder, 20 September 2007

There are many occasions when a quick sketch or piece of thoughtful drama can prove highly effective and memorable when trying to get across a serious point. For those churches with a decent drama group and searching for good material, All-Age Sketches for the Christian Year will prove a real find.

It contains 20 ten-minute amusing, fast and thought-provoking drama sketches (with permission to photocopy) designed to throw fresh light on popular celebrations and delight audiences of young and old. In addition to all the major Christian festivals, there are sketches for Father's Day and New Year, Christian Aid week and the week of prayer for Christian unity. There is a brief introduction to each sketch, a Bible reference and background information together with sermon ideas and performance tips. This is a useful resource providing an excellent and imaginative way to dramatise the Christian year.

From: Richard Burge, Children and Youth Coordinator, Diocese of Wakefield

This will be one of those books people look in first for inspiration at all times of the year. Twenty sketches, all with achievable cast lists, each one with good scripts, fun and humour. Epiphany camels called Humphrey and Quasimodo give a flavour of the groans that will be generated when these sketches are acted out.

From: The Good Bookstall - March 2007

Looking for a sketch for Candlemas Sunday? Mothering Sunday? The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity? How about something to launch a mission week, or to mark harvest festival? Look no further: this book is for you! Entertaining and thought provoking, these sketches will make you laugh, wince and think! They're easy to perform, don't require a cast of thousands, and each one comes complete with a Bible backdrop, sermon prompt and directions on staging and props. 'Candles in the Bin,' 'Fathers Anonymous' and 'Be the Centre' were highlights for me!

Reviewed by Samantha Luscombe

From: Tricia Elson, Youth & Children's Administrator, Diocese of Norwich

All-age Sketches for the Christian Year by Peter Shaw will be welcomed by anyone searching for a pertinent but amusing sketch for key times in the Christian calendar. The 20 sketches are for an all-age audience but not for a very young cast; most need only a few characters but they need to be good readers. Some excellent scripts and well worth a look.

From: Diocese of St Albans newsletter - Summer 2007

The examples contained in the sketch about the Trinity were simple. Using everyday familiar items (a three-legged stool, a musical triangle and an ordinary Jaffa cake), the essence of this deep theological conundrum was de-mystified. There was humour in the contrast between the two protagonists - the somewhat bumbling apparent ignoramus stumbling across the correct answers and thus bursting the bubble of pride and conceit of the allegedly superior character searching for theological truths.

Reviewed by Eileen Bigg, Schools Secretary

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