The Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant is a miracle in itself-a faith-promoting tradition for families as well as a mighty force for soothing souls, changing hearts and bringing many to Jesus Christ.
PhThe 65-minute pageant, called “Jesus the Christ,” is performed on the grounds in front of the Mesa Arizona Temple Visitors’ Center and is presented in English and Spanish during the two weeks prior to Easter. Recognized as the world’s largest annual outdoor pageant, the Mesa Easter Pageant is expected to attract more than 100,000 people this year.
“It is presented out of our love for the Savior and a desire to share that with others,” says Pageant President Wayne Leavitt.
Originally held in 1928 as a choral sunrise service atop a wooden cotton wagon, the pageant has been presented consecutively each year thereafter, except during the war years.
Today, countless hours go into cast selection, practices, stage construction and costume refurbishing. With a huge volunteer cast of more than 450 and 300 additional crew members and with elaborate scenes that include authentic-looking costumes, live animals and intricate props, the staging alone is a monumental undertaking.
Yet, more than the mechanics of the pageant, it is behind the scenes and in the audience that the truly miraculous occurs.
Among the miracles, President Leavitt says, is the way in which the annual pageant is able to give members of the community an understanding of “how we, as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, feel about the Savior Jesus Christ” and “that we truly are believers.”
President Leavitt says people of all faiths attend the pageant, which is free and open to the public.
“Many have said they have felt the spirit of the pageant and that they have come away with a better understanding of the Savior Jesus Christ. They say, from watching the pageant, they feel they know him better and feel his love,” he says.
Presenting an age-old message that is perfect for our times
Pageant Director Nanci Wudel says, perhaps more than at any time in its 70-year history, the central theme of the pageant is particularly appropriate this year.
“In view of the current happenings in the world right now, people are having a lot of anxiety and unrest. The pageant offers them a perfect opportunity to spend an hour having your mind and heart uplifted and to feel the peace that does not exist day to day in our world.”
Sister Wudel, who has been involved in the pageant since 1998, serving as assistant director for four years and as pageant director beginning in 2002, adds, “The story of the life of Christ and his mission is so perfect for all times, but especially at this time when so many people have so much stress in their lives. It’s more important than it’s been in a long, long time. For all of those who come to the pageant, it will bring comfort, uplift and hope.”
Pageant offers peace and healing
This year, the pageant’s message is especially poignant for many cast members as well. Such is the case for Joseph Bullen, who, following a two-and-a-half-year tour in Iraq, where he served with the U.S. Marine Corps, now sees the pageant as a way to promote peace in a very different way.
“I was glad to be involved in the mission of bringing peace to the country and stability and freedom to the Iraqi people. It was a good feeling to serve the Iraqis in that way-and to see their gratitude for us being there and the efforts they are putting forth,” Joseph said.
Still, within weeks of returning home this past November, he inquired about participating in the pageant.
Joseph says the pageant’s portrayal of Jesus Christ conveys what, to him, is the true source of peace. Joseph is thrilled to be involved in sharing this message with the thousands of people who “want to be close to the Savior and find answers for themselves,” by attending the pageant this year.
Another cast member, Jeffrey Anderson of the Cooper Ward in the Gilbert Stapley Stake, says the scenes that show Christ’s miracles and His ability to heal hit particularly close to home for him.
A few weeks after auditioning, Brother Anderson says, “I learned I was in the cast, and I also learned that I needed to have brain surgery. So, it was almost as if the Lord knew I needed to have this opportunity.”
He adds, “As I’ve attended rehearsals and met other cast members I have recounted how only three months ago I was in the ICU, wondering if I was even going to be able to [participate]. Now I’m receiving radiation treatments and, so far, the side effects have been minimal, thereby allowing me to be sustained in my efforts to contribute my small part.”
“I get a little emotional when I encounter any scene of healing or miracles because I’ve felt that I’ve received divine help as I’ve been recovering,” Jeffrey says.
He believes his need for healing and for the sustaining influence of the Savior is far from unique.
“There are actually many people in the cast who carry burdens of all types so I’m not alone,” he says, adding, “I imagine that there are many in the audience, too, who struggle with something physical or spiritual as well and who can benefit as much, if not more, than I have.”
A tradition of building testimonies
Sister Wudel says these underlying stories of personal, life-changing miracles have continued and become a traditional part of the pageant, even as the performance has changed and evolved over the years.
In the mid-1980s, under the direction of Church leaders, a new script was written by Chip Boynton and Craig Cardon, now a member of the Second Quorum of Seventy, and the production became an official Church-sponsored pageant.
That narration remained in place until 2004, when Sister Wudel worked with Church headquarters to make it more “audience friendly,” she says.
“It is more understandable, put in simple, straightforward language, with no terms or anything that would be confusing.”
Also in 2004, assistant director, Jenee Prince, worked with Merrill Jensen to make changes to the music, and the show was re-blocked to fit the new timing.
Over the years, costumes have evolved as well, to more accurately reflect the time of Christ.
A 25-woman-woman committee works year round, considering even the smallest accessory, to make the costume as authentic as possible.
In recent years, the sound system has been updated to an all-electronic and computerized system; and the stage, too, has been dramatically improved, so the pageant is now performed on a state-of-the-art, four-story, multi-level stage.
“This presentation is beautiful and majestic,” says Sister Wudel, but quickly adds that its real power stems from the cast and crew and their individual preparation.
“They truly try to live as if they were walking in the footsteps of Christ during those weeks of preparation and performance and that is reflected in their actions,” she says.
Inviting others to come to Christ
Shane Dahlen, of the McQueen Ward in the Gilbert Stapley Stake, is one cast member who has taken that practice to heart, seeking to improve his own life while inviting others to come to Christ. Brother Dahlen is participating for the sixth year in a row with his wife, Laura, and their children- Jordan, Sterling, Gabrielle, Ivy and Eden.
“It is an opportunity to spend time as a family participating in something that is good,” Brother Dahlen says.
The pageant also has afforded them a way to share the gospel. Four years ago, Brother Dahlen invited a Jewish friend, Howard Karger, to attend. Not only did Howard subsequently join the Church, he also has participated in the pageant since, playing the role of Matthew the Apostle this year.
Brother Dahlen also encouraged a co-worker, Joyce Powell, to audition for the pageant. Joyce, who was involved in a motorcycle ministry at her church, the Phoenix First Assembly of God, said she had watched the pageant for two years, but “I never had any idea in the world that I would be part of it.”
Chosen to play a member of the multitude and to be one of the mourners at the cross, she says, “I have never felt anything so humbling in my whole life.”
Approximately a year later, she was baptized into the Church.
This year, Brother Dahlen again reached out, this time to an entire family.
“A family I have home taught for nine years, has been inactive for five years and has even been attending a different church. They are in the pageant as a family this year and are already talking about next year,” Shane says.
Preparing for the role of Christ
Perhaps most intimately aware of the personal preparation needed to portray their roles in the pageant are Tyler Maxson and Robert Allen, who are playing the role of Christ in the pageant this year.
Brother Maxson, who portrays Christ on the nights the pageant is presented in Spanish, says, “It’s made me a lot more self aware than I’ve ever been, and I’m striving to live a little more like the Savior did, to live the gospel a little better.”
At the same time, he says, “It has awoken me to a whole new understanding of the love of our Heavenly Father and the love our Savior has for each of us.”
A veteran to playing the role of Christ, Robert Allen, formerly of Queen Creek and who now lives in Utah, will, for the fifth year in a row, depict Christ on the nights the pageant is presented in English. His wife, Norine, and their five children have also been members of the cast.
Brother Allen calls it privilege to have had the opportunity to witness the love people have for the Savior and to sense His love for them in return.
It is exhilarating, he says, in the pageant’s final scene, when he is standing on a platform high above the stage to see “the row of angels praising the Savior and then you see the cast on the stage and then you see 10,000 to 12,000 people looking up with love, adoration and respect. I feel just caught in the middle. I feel His love for them, and I feel the love for Him. It is just an overwhelming sensation.”
This year’s remaining performances are Friday, April 10, and Saturday, April 11. All performances begin at 8 p.m. For additional information about the pageant, including parking information, log on to www.easterpageant.org.