When you're on the road or performing at special events, you're not always going to have time for a lesson to follow your skit. In those cases, you want a skit that can introduce a problem and give the solution, all in a matter of five to eight minutes.

You have to be careful in selecting teaching skits. You don't want the skit to seem contrived, unnatural, or preachy. In other words, avoid skits that end with a Mike Brady/ Ward Cleaver life lesson/ lecture. It's too corny, and even the kids who agree with you will be throwing eggs.

There are exceptions to this rule, of course. If cornball and cheese is part of the skit you are using, such a lecture could be appropriate. An example would be a parody of The Brady Bunch or Leave It to Beaver. You can't help but be cheesy when you parody that sort of material. That's part of the fun!

The message doesn't have to be directly stated. In most cases, if the actions and events lead the characters to learn the lesson, the audience will be led to the same conclusion. When this happens, it is redundant to have a character restate the message. These skits tend to make themselves more memorable. Rather than spoon-feeding them and answer that flies in one ear and out the other, you have engaged their thinking process, which will help them remember the lesson.

One of my favorite "lesson" skits is the talk show parody "The Follow-Up Show." I don't like doing talk show parodies. They are done all the time on Saturday Night Live, Mad TV, In Living Color, and in movies like Austin Powers II. There is a good reason for this: talk shows are funny. Sick as that may sound, we as television viewers find somthing terribly funny in the sordid lives that parade across Sally, Jerry, Ricki, and Oprah's stage. However, we've seen it all before, and I never use the gimmick unless I have a good reason.

I found a good reason when I wrote "The Follow-Up Show." Talk shows do updates on their former guests every now and then to let their viewers know how much their lives had changed (for better or worse) since they last appeared. Our youth minister was talking on commitment, and I thought the follow-up gag would work. Christianity is more than a one-time conversion experience. It's a daily walk with God. What better way to illustrate the idea than to have a tabloid TV host follow up on someone who gave their life to Christ?

But first, we need to set the scene. Talk shows seem to thrive on people with weight problems, psychological problems, and sexual problems. We chose to parody the first two for obvious reasons. (This is ministry, and we've gotta keep it clean!)

First up is Richard, a spoof of talk show staple Richard Simmons. Our Richard is not as nice as the one we all know and love in reality, and when he ridicules the obese woman who relapsed and gained back all the weight she lost, she sits on him and crushes him.

Christine, a woman with multiple personalities, arrives on stage second. She has supposedly been "cured" of her psychological disorder, but as the personalities emerge to fight with each other, it's obvious she has not progressed either.

The pay off to the scene comes with Denise, the former bad girl who gave her life to Christ and...went back to being a bad girl. Here, the scene's tone turns serious. You've lured the audience in with humor, now you're going to hit them where they are: by challenging them to look at themselves and ask if they are different since becoming a Christian. "The Follow-Up Show" had a good response in our youth program and at CIY. It is a classic example of how a drama can teach an important Biblical lesson.

The next skit I will mention is one of my all time favorites: "Wicked Ruler." Sometimes you know a great skit the moment it comes off the printer. Other times, it's not until they hit the stage when you find you've discovered something special. Inspired by a line out of The Usual Suspects, this skit took everyone by surprise. The idea began as a reader's theater, but as the premise grew, it became clear this was a full-blown skit that had to be seen, not only heard.

The story line is based on the temptation of Jesus in Matthew 4:1-11. The subject that evening was Satan, and we wanted to present the Prince of Darkness in his truest form: a master of disguise, a creature that will say, do, or be whatever he must to win you over. Rather than have one individual portray the evil one, we split him into three distinct voices: power (one), evil (two), and seduction (three). The message, too, was three-sided: Satan is real; Jesus has already defeated him; but he still has power because we grant it to him, either by our selfish desires or a refusal to believe he is real.

The skit communicates these complex and abstract themes successfully because of its avant garde style. It is performed on a stage that is completely bare except for the ladder at stage right. You might also use a small black block or a small platform in place of the ladder. This ladder represents the rocks and the mountain top Satan uses in his temptation of Christ.

Costuming is an important element of this skit. The stereotypical image of the devil dressed in red did not fit with the devil we wanted to portray. As a powerful angel with many sides to his personality, he also has power enough to appear in many forms. We chose to dress the three actresses wore black turtlenecks, pants, and socks, allowing the audience to create a visual image of each voice in their imagination. Jesus dressed in street clothes to allow the audience to identify with him in his temptation.

The three Devils should speak in a tone representative of their part's distinctive voice (powerful, evil, and seductive). They must know not only their part, but the other two parts as well. Many of the lines follow and build on each other, so the dialogue requires a careful of rehearsal.

The layout of the scene should also aid the performers in bringing out their voice. The powerful devil stands on top of the rock (ladder), looking down on Jesus. The evil devil holds an apple with a bite taken out of it, representing the original sin of Adam and Eve. She can bring more emphasis to that visual by making gesturing with the hand holding the apple. The seductive voice is beside Jesus, lying on stage. She is able to express her personality physically. She may touch him on the arm, wrap her arm around his shoulder, or speak closely in his ear, as if she were whispering.

The final touch to the skit is the blackout. We had trouble with this part in our first performance. Our audience is accustomed to blackouts meaning the end of the skit. The first time we did the skit, the crowd immediately began to applaud and missed the final line. The following night, we asked the audience not to applaud so they wouldn't miss the end.

I've given you a good number of details on how to produce this skit. With an unusual scene like this (or any scene, for that matter), these tiny details add up and make a big difference in the final performance. Like I said, I wasn't sure how good this skit was when I first wrote it. We rehearsed, we brainstormed, we worked every line and every movement to get the most out of the script. The end result was so powerful, it became an instant favorite of the Dramamaniacs. In addition, the theme and style of the skit make it an ideal piece for special performances outside our youth group. A week after its debut, we used "Wicked Ruler" to open up for Forefront recording artist, Bleach!

One final note: in June of 1997, "Wicked Ruler" won the Christians in Theatre Arts National Dramatic Sketch Writing Contest. The sketch was given a reading at the Christians in Theatre Arts national conference in Baltimore. It was also published by the National Drama Service, a Baptist Sunday School Board publication, in the fall of 1997.

Christians in Theatre Arts (CITA), if you're interested, is a national network of churches, Christian theater companies, universities, actors, writers, and directors dedicated to supporting drama as a ministry. The have a bi-monthly newsletter, a national directory, several regional conferences, plus national and international conferences. For more information, go to www.cita.org

Both skits are available in the book Drama Ministry for the Dramatically Challenged, listed on the books page of the drama catalog. "The Follow-Up Show" is available on the skits page, and "Wicker Ruler" is on the Free Skits Page.

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