Music, Miracles, & Moses: Believe the Promise Stage Drama to Bring Exodus to Life

I wrote this article while working for the 2024 International Pathfinder Camporee's daily newspaper, Pathfinder Today. It was the lead story of the "arrival newspaper," aka the first issue.

(Photo by Pathfinder Today photographer)

The story of Moses spans generations, crosses hundreds of miles, and overflows with extraordinary miracles. To bring this narrative to life, this camporee’s Bible story stage production will not only look and sound different from its predecessors, but also shock its audience—in more ways than one. 

Titled Believe the Promise, the drama will play out over five nights, each act 45-50 minutes. The play is five years in the making, with production starting before the last International Pathfinder Camporee, when the drama team began contacting special effects companies to ask: “Can we really pull off the story of Moses?” (The answer? Well, Pathfinders, you’ll have to wait and see.)

Scriptwriting soon followed. Kathy Buchanan, John Campbell, and Allen Hurley, all freelancers who have worked for Adventures in Odyssey and Lamplighter Theatre, came on board. Buchanan wrote the script, working through nine drafts to create the story Pathfinders will witness on stage. Hurley led audio design. John Campbell, along with Sandy Howell, oversaw music. Believe the Promise will feature 30 original songs, written just for the drama.

“This is a true musical,” says Heidi Littell, co-director and assistant producer.

Rehearsals began on July 10, with actors traveling to Berrien Springs, Michigan, for a few weeks of nearly non-stop practice.

“We practice six days a week, including evenings, to pull this off,” Littell described. “It’s like doing three full-length musicals, but only rehearsing for them three weeks before you perform.

It takes years of work to produce what seems like a snippet of time, but we just love that our church does something like this for our young people. They are so valued, we love them so much, that we want the best for them. We want to show them God’s best. That’s why we do all this hard work.”

The logistics of an International Pathfinder Camporee drama are uniquely complex, according to Stage Manager Fran Brookes.

“Usually a play is done in one night, and you just come back and do the same play again the next night,” explained Brookes, who has worked behind the scenes of many stage productions. “This play happens over five nights, so each night presents a whole new challenge and experience, with new scenery and new events. It keeps a stage manager on his toes!”

Brookes is looking forward to being backstage at the camporee, headset on, surrounded by camaraderie, and ready to ensure each crew—from lighting and video to costuming and makeup—has what they need and knows when and how to make scenes happen. He is thrilled to help tell a “sweeping and inspirational” narrative.

Writers, producers, directors, designers, illusionists, actors, managers, and others have applied loads of creativity to bring the story of Moses alive. However, dedicated research of the Bible and Ellen White’s writings fed each creative decision.

“Biblical accuracy is a huge, huge deal for us,” expressed Betty Whitehead, Bible story producer.

“Something we constantly threw onto our writers—of the script and songs—was: ‘These are Pathfinders. They know their Bible. This has to be true to the text,’” Littell added.

Archaeologist and Egyptologist Scottie Baker served as the production team’s historian, ensuring the story remained historically and biblically sound. Richard Davidson, professor of Old Testament Interpretation at Andrews University’s Theological Seminary, also provided a wealth of knowledge. Littell and Whitehead were surprised by some of the cultural elements Baker’s and Davidson’s insights introduced to the story.

“That’s something I love about the storytelling piece of this drama: We get to share fun and interesting facts about the story of Moses that some kids may have never heard of before,” Littell said. She teased that the drama contains at least one “huge shocker.”

“There is one big moment—and we went back and forth and prayed about whether or not we should have even put it in the script—but in the end, we were just like, “It’s the truth, and we want to present the truth,’” she expressed.

Throughout this week, Baker will be in the Wyoming Center, available to Pathfinders of all ages who have questions about the history behind the Bible story.

The production team has catered top-notch props, costumes, set designs, and special effects (including lasers, magic tricks, smoke, and LED screens) to accurately tell a story amplifying God’s power and faithfulness. 

Co-director Jeff Colangelo described the team’s task of recreating miracles from the story of Moses as a “beautiful challenge.” One of his favorite parts of the drama is the plagues sequence.

“That sequence involves such an amazing collaboration of illusions, lighting, music, choreography, and storytelling that just wows me every time,” he said.

Brookes hopes Pathfinders will have fun determining how onstage miracles were created.

“It takes a lot of thought, cool machinery, and some sleight-of-hand to portray all the miracles God worked through Moses,” he added.

The Nile River sits center stage, filled with water and attentively embellished with dirt and greenery. This ginormous prop symbolizes the drama team’s desire for Pathfinders to apply the story to their lives, for in this “river,” Pathfinders will commit their lives to God through baptism and actors will recreate key moments of Moses’ life.

Both Littell and Whitehead expressed their passion for a particular lesson to be heavily emphasized in the first night’s program, which will center around Moses’ family.

“We want to share the importance of Moses’ home life and upbringing,” Littell said. “[Ellen White’s book] Patriarchs and Prophets really covers the importance of what Jochebed and Amram did, how they poured the Spirit of God into Moses, prayed over him, and taught him the value of not compromising. They made him into the man that he was.”

Whitehead hopes Pathfinder leaders and parents will watch Act 1 and learn more about the significance of their roles in children’s lives.

“Moses could have easily been swayed away from God by Egypt’s wealth and luxury, all the temptations, but he did not waver. And it’s because of that solid upbringing,” Whitehead said. “He had a relationship with his God, and that was developed in the home. And Moses was just 12 years old when he went to the palace! That’s our Pathfinders; that’s their age.”

Act 1 concludes with Littell’s favorite scene, when, through a mother’s love and prayers, the audience will witness God’s power overshadow man’s power. 

“Kathy, our writer, did an amazing job,” she said while describing the scene. “God is just interwoven in this script in such an amazing and powerful way.”

Colangelo believes this drama demonstrates that patience, perseverance, and trust in God can help one overcome any battle. Littell hopes Pathfinders will watch Believe the Promise and desire to emulate God the way Moses did. Whitehead expressed the same sentiment, adding that this story’s central message will be perfectly summed up in its finale.

“The final song is amazing because it’s a culmination, a message that God always fulfills His promises,” Whitehead said. “The message of this story is: ‘Do not compromise. Moses did not compromise. He held onto his faith.’ 

“Yes, Moses messed up, he didn’t always wait for God to work, and we make mistakes too,” she continued. “But God can use us even when we mess up. He will always be there for us, He has a plan for our life, and He always fulfills His promises. That’s what we want the kids to realize: Get in your Bible, read those promises. They will strengthen you for life.”