'The Harrowing of Hell:' Miner Baptist Church Youth to hold dinner theatre

MINER, Mo. — For the second-straight year, the Miner Baptist Church Youth will hold a dinner theater for the community.

“The Harrowing of Hell” will be presented by Parable, the youth performing arts team at Miner Baptist Church, at 6 p.m. Feb. 17-21 in the Studio One Theatre on the Miner Baptist Church campus.

David Mercer, minister to students at Miner Baptist Church, said the production is a one-act play with an elaborate and visually stunning presentation of the characters of the seven deadly sins, death and Hell, minions of Hell and the crucified Christ.

“Costuming and make up really set the stage for the excesses of Hades and its characters,” Mercer said.

Harrowing, a farming term, refers to breaking up the top soil with an instrument with iron team known as a harrow.

“Psychologically and socially the term means a hurtful or dreaded experience,” Mercer said. “We often speak and sometimes too lightly of a ‘harrowing experience.’ The idea of Christ harrowing hell is a poetic and symbolic way of saying how keenly and completely God in Christ has overcome evil in all of its manifestations.”

The production will include the reprise of the movement piece, “He Holds the Keys,” a beautiful musical retelling of Christ taking of the keys of death and Hell.

Under the direction of Mercer, the cast includes: Lee Marsh as Satanas; Lonnie Lejeune as the Crucified Christ; Lydia Hester, Emily Marriott and Arialynn Buffett as The Mystical Chorus; Lillie Bartlett as Hell; Kaysar Revelle as Death; Layne Collier as Pride; Jordan Pavelka as Greed; Emma Qualls as Lust; Zoie McDonald as Envy; Robert Berger as Gluttony; Noah Lowe as Anger/Wrath; Samuel Tyler as Sloth and Landri Hammontree; Khielynn-Claire Pobst and Khalia Andrews as the Minions of Hell. Also included are Regina Lambert, Stuart Marsh and Grace Qualls as Assistant Directors: Mollie Bartlett and Kaylee Pipes - Makeup and Hair; Colton Ash and Kyle Parr - Technical and Nolan Self as the Resurrected Christ.

Tickets are $10 each and include the play and dinner. Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased by calling the church office at 573– 471-1331. Proceeds from the sales of tickets will go to help students be a part of summer missions opportunities.