Celebrating 41 years: The Knoxville Nativity Pageant

The Knoxville Nativity Pageant has a cast of 120, a 200-voice choir, and a 20-piece orchestra.

Every year during the second week in December, city crews prepare for Knoxville's biggest holiday event, the annual Nativity Pageant, by dismantling the professional ice hockey rink at the Civic Coliseum and replacing it with the little town of Bethlehem.

This year marks the 41st anniversary of the show, which presents the historic Christmas story in the form of a narrative drama, with a cast of 120, a 200-voice choir, and a 20-piece orchestra. The spectacular event has become a family favorite, not only for audiences, but also for performers, some of whom have been involved in the production's entire history. Angie Johnson, past president, says that her husband, Rob, and his brothers were part of the cast as children, and his mother, Judy Johnson, Angie Johnson, past president, says that her husband, Rob, and his brothers were part of the cast as children, and his mother, Judy Johnson, still participates. Johnson claims that when she said "I do" to Rob, involvement in the pageant seemed an implicit part of her pledge. Now their own children, Lizzie and Nathan, are also cast members.

Marie Alcorn and Rob White have also been long-time participants, each having played various roles over the years. And Patricia Martin, who as a child started out as a shepherd, graduated to understudy for Mary after 15 years in the cast. Her mother and sister-in-law still sing in the choir, and two of her brothers and their children are also cast members.

Typically, applicants far outnumber the available roles, and children must be eight years old to participate, but Martin was so emotionally invested in the pageant that she put her children's names on the waiting list as soon as they were born. Her daughter Ellie, now 13, became a cast member when she was 10, while younger brother Steven, nine, and sister Emma, seven, are still awaiting their casting calls.

Because the performance is free, the pageant board relies on donations for its annual budget of $62,000, but the public has been generous. "People give anywhere from ten to ten thousand dollars," says Martin. And there are dozens of anonymous donors, such as the contributor who hands out hundreds of Bibles to audience members each year, while local businesses like The Mulch Company and ToeZay Decorating and Display provide their services for free.

Matthew Lloyd, director of this year's show, is assisted by 12 other professionals who oversee set designs, music, and drama. Help also comes from a 27-member volunteer board of trustees which includes Mayor Bill Haslam, ministers, and local business leaders. Ernie Roberts is assistant director, and Kathy Wuethrick is the current president of the board.

Things generally run smoothly. Martin says that, for the most part, the only unscripted incidents occur with the animals. "Sometimes," she says, "the goats bleat in time with the music, and we never knew how Buster, the donkey that carried Mary, was going to behave. And then there was the time that some of the sheep escaped, so we now use professional handlers." Sadly, the unpredictable but beloved Buster passed away this year and has been replaced by a new donkey, Jenny.

Pageant production runs on a strict and efficient schedule, from the ice removal six days before to setting up scenery, sets, lighting and sound systems and laying mulch, all within four days. Finally, a full-dress rehearsal is held on Saturday, the day before the opening performance.

All the props, some from the original production, are carefully stored each year, but, says Angie Johnson, "the board presidents always keep Baby Jesus and the Star of Bethlehem in their homes because we can't risk losing Baby Jesus."

Since the initial pageant began back in 1968, the show has consistently played to capacity crowds in the 4,506-seat Civic Coliseum. Not bad for a small production that started outside on the coliseum lawn in bitter cold weather, with costumes fashioned from white sheets borrowed from the UT Agricultural Campus. "Things change over the years," says Wuethrick, "but the nativity story will always remain the same."

This year's performances are scheduled for Sunday, December 13 at 3 p.m.; Monday, December 14 at 7 p.m., and Tuesday, December 15 at 7 p.m. For tickets, call (865)656-4444; information and group sales, (865)215-8999. Patricia Martin, who as a child started out as a shepherd, graduated to understudy for Mary after 15 years in the cast. Her mother and sister-in-law still sing in the choir, and two of her brothers and their children are also cast members.

Typically, applicants far outnumber the available roles, and children must be eight years old to participate, but Martin was so emotionally invested in the pageant that she put her children's names on the waiting list as soon as they were born. Her daughter Ellie, now 13, became a cast member when she was 10, while younger brother Steven, nine, and sister Emma, seven, are still awaiting their casting calls.

Because the performance is free, the pageant board relies on donations for its annual budget of $62,000, but the public has been generous. "People give anywhere from ten to ten thousand dollars," says Martin. And there are dozens of anonymous donors, such as the contributor who hands out hundreds of Bibles to audience members each year, while local businesses like The Mulch Company and ToeZay Decorating and Display provide their services for free.

Matthew Lloyd, director of this year's show, is assisted by 12 other professionals who oversee set designs, music, and drama. Help also comes from a 27-member volunteer board of trustees which includes Mayor Bill Haslam, ministers, and local business leaders. Ernie Roberts is assistant director, and Kathy Wuethrick is the current president of the board.

Things generally run smoothly. Martin says that, for the most part, the only unscripted incidents occur with the animals. "Sometimes," she says, "the goats bleat in time with the music, and we never knew how Buster, the donkey that carried Mary, was going to behave. And then there was the time that some of the sheep escaped, so we now use professional handlers." Sadly, the unpredictable but beloved Buster passed away this year and has been replaced by a new donkey, Jenny.

Pageant production runs on a strict and efficient schedule, from the ice removal six days before to setting up scenery, sets, lighting and sound systems and laying mulch, all within four days. Finally, a full-dress rehearsal is held on Saturday, the day before the opening performance.

All the props, some from the original production, are carefully stored each year, but, says Angie Johnson, "the board presidents always keep Baby Jesus and the Star of Bethlehem in their homes because we can't risk losing Baby Jesus."

Since the initial pageant began back in 1968, the show has consistently played to capacity crowds in the 4,506-seat Civic Coliseum. Not bad for a small production that started outside on the coliseum lawn in bitter cold weather, with costumes fashioned from white sheets borrowed from the UT Agricultural Campus. "Things change over the years," says Wuethrick, "but the nativity story will always remain the same."

This year's performances are scheduled for Sunday, December 13 at 3 p.m.; Monday, December 14 at 7 p.m., and Tuesday, December 15 at 7 p.m. For tickets, call (865)656-4444; information and group sales, (865)215-8999.

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