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Sharing the Mormon faith
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| Jeff Dickamore of Bountiful, Utah, portrays Joseph Smith with Emily Castleton of Provo, Utah playing his wife Emma in the Nauvoo Pageant which opened Tuesday night and will continue nightly, Tuesdays through Saturdays, always at 8:30 p.m., on an outdoor stage in Nauvoo until Aug. 1. There is no admission charge for any of the shows. |
Nauvoo Pageant brings ‘beautiful place’ of 1800s back to life with stories, narratives and songs from 21 actors
By Robin Delaney/MVM News Network
NAUVOO, Ill. –– For yet another year, the stories and songs of those that brought the Mormon faith to the area and built a once prosperous, bustling city called Nauvoo, meaning “beautiful place,” that rivaled Chicago in the 1800s will be heard in the now-smaller community.
The Nauvoo Pageant opened Tuesday night and will continue nightly, Tuesdays through Saturdays, always at 8:30 p.m., on an outdoor stage in Nauvoo until Aug. 1. There is no admission charge for any of the shows. The “1840s country fair” pre-show featuring games, crafts, music and round dancing will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. before each performance.
The pageant, full of stories, narratives and songs, tells the story of those who settled what was little more than a swamp back in 1839. Battling religious persecution and the physical hardships of the frontier, the settlers built a thriving community in Illinois that was comparable in size and business activity only to Chicago.
Now, a core cast of 21 professional actors in lead roles tell the stories, sometimes through narratives and sometimes in song in vignettes, of these pioneers – and reinforce the faith of present followers.
“It is so much more than a show or a spectacular,” said Jeff Dickamore, who stepped out of his role as the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith to speak to reporters and visitors Tuesday during Media Day. “It is an opportunity for us to share what we believe. We don’t seek to take away the beliefs of others, but to perhaps add to those beliefs.”
Emily Castleton, who plays his wife Emma Smith, agreed that the pageant is as much a story about a place, about Nauvoo, as it is about the founder of the Mormon church and the early founders of the faith.
“I feel we are inviting people to a place where everybody wants to feel wanted, to feel loved, to feel God,” Castleton said. “That is the feeling of all of us working on this show – not just the ones taking the stage or working behind the stage. It’s what we wish to express to all who come here.”
And there are plenty of volunteers working in a variety of capacities connected to the pageant or to other activities linked to the heritage of Nauvoo. Five separate family casts of about 140 each volunteer for two weeks. The first week, they rehearse and run the pageant pre-show and the second week, they perform.
Another 100 some volunteers handle the costumes, security, children’s activities, office work and stage operations. Among this group are about 22 young men, ages 17,18 or 19, who serve on a work crew to set up, run, maintain and strike the pageant stage and technical equipment.
And for those having attending previous performances of the pageant, there will be familiar faces. Emily Wadley, who played Emma Smith last year, will take the stage with her husband Richard and son Douglas as they portray the Elijah Fordham family.
“The message of the pageant is the same as the message of the gospel; we are spirit sons and daughters of God, we belong with one another. We have the opportunity to experience the power of this message together as a family. The Fordhams were a family dedicated to the prophet, their faith and their God,” Wadley says. “As parents, these are qualities we hope to foster in our children.”
And history buffs will surely find their share of information during the vignettes, offered at various times in Nauvoo, as an actress portrays Joseph Smith’s mother and tells of her son’s courtship and marriage, missionary work, incarceration in Missouri and later death through a series of letters written between her son and his wife Emma. The vignette is performed at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays by the Mansion House at the corner of Water and Main streets.
The vignette entitled “Women of Nauvoo” has actresses in the roles of Emma Smith, Eliza Snow, Ellen Briggs Douglas and others “Women of Old Nauvoo” sharing their experiences with the Relief Society. The society was formed by a handful of sisters and, according to Historic Nauvoo press releases, has grown into one of the largest women’s organizations in the world. Performances of this vignette are at 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Relief Society Garden by the Historic Nauvoo Visitors’ Center.
Young people are not to be left out of the vignette series. The “Youth of Zion” has past figures of Mary and Caroline Rollins, George Cannon and Robert Dennison tell stories of bravery, testimony and good old-fashioned fun at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday and at 4 p.m. Saturday at The Print Shop on Main Street.
The “Trail of Hope” vignette allows visitors to stroll along Parsley Street in Nauvoo to the riverbank while stopping to hear re-enactors tell the stories of those who walked those same streets in the 1840s and their motivations for leaving the security of their homes to head west. The vignette is performed along the route from 8 to 8:45 a.m. on Thursday and Saturday.
In the West Grove, visitors can hear portions of Joseph Smith’s last major discourse and a funeral sermon given in honor of Brother King Follett in the vignette entitled “King Follett Discourse.” Performances are held at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Those seeking a bit of humor with their history lesson can catch the “Go Ye Into All the World” vignette in which actors portray Elders Parsley Pratt, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Robert Dennison and George Cannon. Performances are at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and at 4 p.m. on Saturdays.
A unique feature this year is “Our Story Goes On,” which is presented on Sundays in other cities in the region to benefit various community causes. A core of 20 professional performers are taking their talent on the road to present a narrative interwoven with American and Broadway classics from “Fiddler on the Roof,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “West Side Story,” “He Loves Me” and “Les Miserable,” as well as songs from Josh Groban.
“This is an opportunity for us to give back to those here in the Midwest who have given so much support to the pageant over the years,” said David Warner, writer and producer of the pageant.
Sunday, the group will travel to Quincy, Ill., to perform at 4 and 6:30 p.m. at St. Boniface Catholic Church with all proceeds going to the Historic Quincy Business District. On Sunday, July 19, “Our Story Goes On” will be presented at the Marine Bank & Trust in Carthage, Ill., at 4 and 6:30 p.m. to benefit Memorial Hospital. On July 26, the group will perform at the Fairfield Arts & Convention Center in Fairfield to help raise funds for the Fairfield First Fridays Art Walk.
The Nauvoo Pageant opened Tuesday night and will continue nightly, Tuesdays through Saturdays, always at 8:30 p.m., on an outdoor stage in Nauvoo until Aug. 1. There is no admission charge for any of the shows. The “1840s country fair” pre-show featuring games, crafts, music and round dancing will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. before each performance.
The pageant, full of stories, narratives and songs, tells the story of those who settled what was little more than a swamp back in 1839. Battling religious persecution and the physical hardships of the frontier, the settlers built a thriving community in Illinois that was comparable in size and business activity only to Chicago.
Now, a core cast of 21 professional actors in lead roles tell the stories, sometimes through narratives and sometimes in song in vignettes, of these pioneers – and reinforce the faith of present followers.
“It is so much more than a show or a spectacular,” said Jeff Dickamore, who stepped out of his role as the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith to speak to reporters and visitors Tuesday during Media Day. “It is an opportunity for us to share what we believe. We don’t seek to take away the beliefs of others, but to perhaps add to those beliefs.”
Emily Castleton, who plays his wife Emma Smith, agreed that the pageant is as much a story about a place, about Nauvoo, as it is about the founder of the Mormon church and the early founders of the faith.
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And there are plenty of volunteers working in a variety of capacities connected to the pageant or to other activities linked to the heritage of Nauvoo. Five separate family casts of about 140 each volunteer for two weeks. The first week, they rehearse and run the pageant pre-show and the second week, they perform.
Another 100 some volunteers handle the costumes, security, children’s activities, office work and stage operations. Among this group are about 22 young men, ages 17,18 or 19, who serve on a work crew to set up, run, maintain and strike the pageant stage and technical equipment.
And for those having attending previous performances of the pageant, there will be familiar faces. Emily Wadley, who played Emma Smith last year, will take the stage with her husband Richard and son Douglas as they portray the Elijah Fordham family.
“The message of the pageant is the same as the message of the gospel; we are spirit sons and daughters of God, we belong with one another. We have the opportunity to experience the power of this message together as a family. The Fordhams were a family dedicated to the prophet, their faith and their God,” Wadley says. “As parents, these are qualities we hope to foster in our children.”
And history buffs will surely find their share of information during the vignettes, offered at various times in Nauvoo, as an actress portrays Joseph Smith’s mother and tells of her son’s courtship and marriage, missionary work, incarceration in Missouri and later death through a series of letters written between her son and his wife Emma. The vignette is performed at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays by the Mansion House at the corner of Water and Main streets.
The vignette entitled “Women of Nauvoo” has actresses in the roles of Emma Smith, Eliza Snow, Ellen Briggs Douglas and others “Women of Old Nauvoo” sharing their experiences with the Relief Society. The society was formed by a handful of sisters and, according to Historic Nauvoo press releases, has grown into one of the largest women’s organizations in the world. Performances of this vignette are at 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Relief Society Garden by the Historic Nauvoo Visitors’ Center.
Young people are not to be left out of the vignette series. The “Youth of Zion” has past figures of Mary and Caroline Rollins, George Cannon and Robert Dennison tell stories of bravery, testimony and good old-fashioned fun at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday and at 4 p.m. Saturday at The Print Shop on Main Street.
The “Trail of Hope” vignette allows visitors to stroll along Parsley Street in Nauvoo to the riverbank while stopping to hear re-enactors tell the stories of those who walked those same streets in the 1840s and their motivations for leaving the security of their homes to head west. The vignette is performed along the route from 8 to 8:45 a.m. on Thursday and Saturday.
In the West Grove, visitors can hear portions of Joseph Smith’s last major discourse and a funeral sermon given in honor of Brother King Follett in the vignette entitled “King Follett Discourse.” Performances are held at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Those seeking a bit of humor with their history lesson can catch the “Go Ye Into All the World” vignette in which actors portray Elders Parsley Pratt, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Robert Dennison and George Cannon. Performances are at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and at 4 p.m. on Saturdays.
A unique feature this year is “Our Story Goes On,” which is presented on Sundays in other cities in the region to benefit various community causes. A core of 20 professional performers are taking their talent on the road to present a narrative interwoven with American and Broadway classics from “Fiddler on the Roof,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “West Side Story,” “He Loves Me” and “Les Miserable,” as well as songs from Josh Groban.
“This is an opportunity for us to give back to those here in the Midwest who have given so much support to the pageant over the years,” said David Warner, writer and producer of the pageant.
Sunday, the group will travel to Quincy, Ill., to perform at 4 and 6:30 p.m. at St. Boniface Catholic Church with all proceeds going to the Historic Quincy Business District. On Sunday, July 19, “Our Story Goes On” will be presented at the Marine Bank & Trust in Carthage, Ill., at 4 and 6:30 p.m. to benefit Memorial Hospital. On July 26, the group will perform at the Fairfield Arts & Convention Center in Fairfield to help raise funds for the Fairfield First Fridays Art Walk.
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