Scrapbook! The Almost Musical, Written by Sally Sloop, Performed by Shepherd’s Quake under the direction of Tim Sweet
★★★★★ (five stars!)
What started off as a dreary fall day turned into a beautiful night of laughter and joy as Good Shepherd celebrated its 25th birthday with the play Scrapbook! The Almost Musical. The play was performed in front of a packed house in a gym transformed on the night of Saturday November 8th, 2008 at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church on Creedmoor Road. The play promised to be “a journey through the eyes of some of GSLC youth”, and as we followed the memoir of Good Shepherd from “seedling to sanctuary” it became clear very quickly that this play would be hard to forget.
The main action of the play takes place in the dreams of Mother and Father Time, played by Jacob Montgomery and Rachel Boyce. As the elderly couple rocks in their chairs knitting their scarves, the audience is immediately woven into the story as several youth who are cleaning the church attic stumble across a time capsule containing a scrapbook. The action that followed took the viewers on a ride through the history of the church from Pastor Pools’ (Sloop backwards!), played by Marshall Sweet, invitation of 5000 North Raleigh households to the building the first sanctuary.
The play was written in three acts: Believe, Belong, and Serve. In the first act the audience was reminded of the not so extravagant worship that early members endured in the climate uncontrolled halls of a local preschool and elementary school. While the setting may not have been a traditional church, each Sunday together was always “good” and God would always be their Shepherd. The first acted ended with a humorous reminder of just how much those early Good Shepherd members ate and with a moving reenactment of the signing of the charter.
The second act, Belong, was a hysterical look at the youth of Good Shepherd 25 years ago with the youth today. The act stared Scott Friberg, Karen Friberg Ceccato, Karen Pailthorpe Garris, and Rick Pailthorpe who all played themselves and Bryant Beebe and Brian Grimes. The scene took place in McDonald’s where the now middle age youth of the past were reminiscing about the good old days. Things go out of control when Scott decides to pick on Bryant Beebe. The phrase “pick on someone your own size” comes to mind as Scott picks Bryant up over his head. Scott gets a taste of his own medicine, however, when “B.G.” shows up and returns the favor. The act was a comical way of celebrating the youth, Heartsong, and the building of the first Sanctuary.
The final act of the play was just as moving and entertaining as the first two. It began with a crisis at the coffee house. While several groups attempted to fill the void in entertainment, it was not until Lisa Caudle took the stage that the need was met. Ms. Caudle blew the audience away as she sang “Amazing Grace”. The following scene summed up a typical staff meeting at Good Shepherd. Between older Pastor Pools’ (Calvin Sweet) constant falling asleep and Van Ferris’ (Michael Dickson) continuous reference to others as “dude” the audience was left gasping for air in the midst of their gut-busting laughter. The audience was also reminded of Pastor Ztul’s (Olivia Wedegartner) obsession with all-things ACC, Lois Lane’s (Brooklyn Adkins) saintly style, and Paul McCartney’s (Bryan Lester) constant battle with the icemaker. The act and play ended with the cast carrying forward blocks with the various ministries GSLC has been a part of over the years. This was a moving tribute to the work Good Shepherd has continued to do in North Raleigh, North Carolina, and around the world.
Scrapbook! The Almost Musical was an original play written by someone who has experienced Good Shepherd’s 25-year history up-close and personal. A play is only as good as its writer. Scrapbook’s writer did a phenomenal job intertwining the quarter century history of GSLC in a hysterical and beautiful way. Sally Sloop is a genius and gift to Good Shepherd and God’s Holy Church.
Shepherd’s Quake’s performance of Scrapbook! The Almost Musical was astonishing and enough to leave even the most eloquent critics at a loss for words. Each and every young person who acted in that play did so at a professional and sincere level that left the audience not wanting the two hour play to end. The Stage Crew did an awesome job not only setting up the stage and working with the props, but also ensuring that every transition was smooth and did not distract from the flow of the play. Everything from the sound to the lights to the curtain made a statement that truly raised the bar.
I wish I had the space to name every one of the more than sixty performers and numerous others involved in this production for each of them deserves to be recognized for their outstanding effort. Unfortunately I do not, and so I will have to say this all at once. For all of you who were involved in Scrapbook! The Almost Musical in any way, BRAVO and Thank You!
