Acting for an impact

Liberty drama team traveled south to perform at schools during spring break

During spring break, the Liberty University King’s Players Drama Team traveled to various schools in Georgia, Alabama and Louisiana. Overall, more than 200 people were saved over the course of the week.

The King’s Players is a touring drama group that ministers to schools and churches across the country, on Liberty’s campus and in the Lynchburg community. Faculty Advisor David Allison and 13 students in the King’s Players were on the nine-day trip.

The group went to a middle school in Louisiana on Tuesday of spring break. The school day started at 8:20 a.m., but more than 750 of the 1,000 students in the school arrived almost an hour early at 7:30 a.m. so they could watch the King’s Players perform.

“We were concerned about several factors,” Allison said. “We thought if anything went wrong, we would be hurting. We just didn’t want people walking out in the middle of it.”

However, the gym remained full throughout the performance.

Whitney Robertson, one of the members of the Players, shared her testimony at the meeting. She said she was encouraged that so many people were saved.

“We don’t necessarily get to witness all that the Lord is doing behind the scenes, but in situations like the school, we got a glimpse into the fruits of our labors,” Robertson said. “That was definitely encouraging and motivating because we got to see the Lord actually does use these players to speak his truth and that it’s moving and stirring people’s hearts.”

For Robertson, being part of the King’s Players is about more than just performing plays.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed being on the team,” Robertson said. “I absolutely love traveling and performing, but I think the thing I’ve most enjoyed about it is the people I have met and becoming so close to my team members. When you go on long trips like this, you just become family automatically. I’ve gained lifelong friends through this experience.”

Allison knows what they accomplished was not because of their own doing.

“Dr. Falwell used to say that nothing of significance was ever accomplished without prayer,” Allison said. “We had a small army of people praying. I know I had over 300 people on Facebook praying for us.”

The King’s Players are planning more trips for the future. Allison said they were invited to do a similar trip at a high school and middle school for fall break of 2017.

“It’s about as definite as it can be from this point,” Allison said. “They said they could do it, and I said we’ll make it happen. Right now, I’m planning fall break for Georgia.”

The King’s Players group was founded by Mark and Helen Lloyd, who also started what is now the school of communication at Liberty. The King’s Players began touring in 1960 and is Liberty’s oldest ministry. The drama team joined Liberty in 1973 and have visited more than 5,000 churches, bringing an average of 200 people to Christ each year.

The King’s Players is open to any student with talents in drama and music, although students wishing to join the group must audition and be selected for the group by the director.

VAN TUYL is a news reporter.