Lamplighter Theatre

As you probably already know, Lamplighter Theatre is offering the newest production, A Peep Behind the Scenes, as a free download to people who will commit to using it as a tool to spread the gospel. We’re calling it the Peep Behind the Scenes Outreach, and if you haven’t signed up yet, you can do so on the official outreach page.

On May 28th, 2010, we’ll be sending all of those who signed up an email with the information necessary to download the entire drama! That’s over 3 1/2 hours of remarkable story telling, original music scores, and the best sound design around. We’re making it available to you so that you can tell your friends, family, and the community-at-large about the redemptive hope that can be theirs through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Here are some of the ways you can do that:

• Have a listening party and open the invitation to your unsaved friends and family
• Make some copies and give them away to people you think might be in need
• Make it available to local community groups like retirement homes
• Invite a single friend over for some coffee or tea and listen with them.
• Get in touch with your churches, homeschool groups, small, groups, and all of your friends to let

You can also help us spread the word by telling your church leaders, homeschool groups, small group members, etc. about this opportunity. We all know people who need to hear the Gospel and who need to know that they are not alone. We encourage you to take this opportunity to share A Peep Behind the Scenes with whoever you can think of.

Resources

On our official Outreach page, we’ve provided some downloadable resources for you to help in spreading the word. There you will find 2 versions of a beautifully designed full color poster which you can get printed and hang up in your church and around the community. There are also audio and video resources which you can use to give people a glimpse of what Lamplighter Theatre and A Peep Behind the Scenes are all about. Download them now, and get started!

Feedback

We want to hear your stories! There are many ways you can share your experiences with this outreach initiative. Here are a few ideas:

• Write us a letter! It’s not old fashioned! And we love receiving mail with your stories of how God used a Lamplighter book or drama in your life. Mail it to Lamplighter Theatre, PO Box 777, Waverly, PA 18471.
• Contribute to the Facebook Page. Become a fan and post your stories and photos of your efforts to deliver the Gospel message contained in A Peep Behind the Scenes.
• Write a blog post and send us the link. We’d be happy to share it with others. Be sure to link the drama in the post!

A Peep Behind the Scenes is not just another story. And that’s a trait shared by all of the Lamplighter books. But A Peep Behind the Scenes has a special ability to convey the need we all have for a loving Saviour. It proves to us that behind every smiling face is a hurting heart and that for those things that appear to be glamorous, there is a high price to pay.   

So join us online or on the radio from April 10 – May 22nd for the 7-episode epic drama, A Peep Behind the Scenes! Don’t miss it!

The Hedge of Thorns is one of Lamplighter’s best-selling books. We’re so excited to be able to breathe new life into this centuries-old tale  of boundaries and obedience to God in the new audio drama from Lamplighter Theatre. For hundreds of years this story has communicated the urgency and importance of obeying both earthly boundaries and those that God has placed in our lives for our own protection. The consequences of disobedience are grave and do not just affect our own lives but can permanently alter the lives of those around us. In The Hedge of Thorns, young John finds out how our actions can have a devastating impact on the people we love the most. His precious little sister, Belle, will bear the scars of his disobedience for the rest of her life, and John will carry a burden of guilt and regret for the rest of his.

Faith does not merely refer to our belief and acknowledgement that God is the Creator and Saviour of the universe. It extends to our reliance on His protection and guidance in our lives. Sometimes this will mean obvious “Do Not Enter” signs and clear instruction that we are not to proceed along a certain path. Other times it will be the teaching hand of a parent, peer, or mentor offering wisdom and insight that helps us understand what God may be doing in our lives. God will place hedges in our lives to protect us and direct us along the straight and narrow path. Whether the hedge is a person, a rule, or even a literal hedge like it was for John and Belle, we can be sure that God’s intention is to continue to cultivate our character through adversity and perseverance.

Coming up in March we will be airing the radio drama of one of our best known titles, A Peep Behind the Scenes. But long before the day of the first broadcast, much must be accomplished to get the drama produced. The script must be written, actors need to be hired, the studio needs to be booked, and travel arrangements must be made.

For most of our dramas we head across the Atlantic to record with one of the world’s most talented radio theatre producers, Phillip Glassborrow at SoundHouse Studios, London. In the future, we’ll tell you all about Phillip. But as a precursor to that, I’d like for you to see some of our actors and production staff in action with these “behind the scenes” (pun intended!) videos from the recording sessions for A Peep Behind the Scenes. Enjoy!

Well, I hope you enjoyed our latest production, The Basket of Flowers, which aired its fourth and final episode over the course of the past week. If you haven’t heard it yet then get to our website before Friday to hear it. Come Friday, the first episode of Charlie’s Choice will take its place, so you better hurry! The 2-disc set, complete with beautifully illustrated, full color packaging is now available for purchase and will be shipping out starting October 30th, so get your copy today! Or, if you’re in a hurry, you can purchase the high quality MP3 version here. Either way, you’re bound to enjoy it over and over again!

As you may know, the Basket of Flowers was the first book published by Lamplighter Publishing. Just like Finnian Jones told Jessica in the story, it was first written in 1878 by Christoph von Schmid. Originally written in German, then translated into French, and then into English, this book is the cornerstone of our Lamplighter Rare Collector Series.  What a picture of mercy, thankfulness, honesty, and integrity it paints for us in fundamental truths like “It is better to die for the truth than to live for a lie,” or “The worst pillow to sleep on is the pillow of a guilty conscience.”

What are some of the truths that stood out to you as you listened? What were your favorite parts of the story? We’d love to hear from you! Post a comment below and share your thoughts.

If you’re a fan of the cinematic version of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, then you’ll doubtless know the name John Rhys-Davies, the 6′1″ Welshman from Tanzania who plays the dwarf, Gimlee, in The Lord of the Rings. John Rhys-Davies is an accomplished actor on screen and in the recording studio with a list of over 190 acting credits and over 25 soundtrack and voice-over appearances to his name. Here is an excerpt from the Internet Movie Database about John’s background:

Acclaimed British actor John Rhys-Davies graduated from the University of East Anglia and is probably best known to film audiences for his roles in the blockbuster hits Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). He has also had leading roles in Victor Victoria (1982), The Living Daylights (1987) and King Solomon’s Mines (1985).

Rhys-Davies, who was raised in England, Africa and Wales, credits his early exposure to classic literature for his decision to pursue acting and writing. he later refined his craft at London’s renowned Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. His television credits include James Clavell’s “Shogun” (1980) and “Noble House” (1988), “Great Expectations” (1989), “War and Remembrance” (1988) and “Arch

aeology”(1991).

An avid collector of vintage automobiles, Rhys-Davies has a host of theater roles to his credit, including “The Misanthrope”, “Hedda Gabler” and most of Shakespeare’s works. He divides his time between Los Angeles and the Isle of Man.

John is the host of Lamplighter Theatre, the voice you’ll hear at the beginning of each series, welcoming you Abington Falls, where Finnian Jones has a quirky little shop full of “more than you would expect.” His voice over work for Lamplighter Theatre is recorded at a studio on the Isle of Man.

Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the microphones at a recording session for a radio drama? Well here is an insiders look from one of the industries best, Mark Drury, on what the Foley recording involved for Sir Malcolm and the Missing Prince.

Well, you’ve got 53 scenes with some challenging action and settings…it ain’t a Whit’s End or Barclay’s show! Even with 2 of us working on it together (with me doing some stuff on my own), the time commitment will probably end up being around 80-85 hours for the foley. That might be about 15-20% longer than if I was doing this at Focus – in a true foley room with all surfaces and props readily available – but foley is always a very time-consuming process, especially when you have to get very unique sounds like crawling through weeds, jumping on/off wagons, horse dismounts (did that with a real saddle on a stand), building a dam in a stream (used a real stream), jumping on/off a rolling ladder, getting in/out of a boat and rowing, etc, etc, etc. Can’t just get that stuff off of sound fx CD’s and make it sound in-scene or timed correctly.

Foley is the art of recording the natural, everyday sounds that would occur in a soundtrack for a movie or audio recording. Basic sounds would be cloth movements, foot steps, doors opening, body movements, etc. It is the sound that provides a real life aspect in a fictional environment. You may not notice when it’s there, but when it’s not, you would certainly feel a difference. Foley recording involves long days of much physical activity, scrutinizing the performance to ensure accuracy, and a lot of editing. For a high quality, realistic sounding audio drama like Sir Malcolm and the Missing Prince, much of the recording would be done at various locations outside the studio in order to capture the most realistic sounds.

Our producers and sound designers have put an incredible amount of effort into making this audio drama the very best that it can be in a relatively short amount of time. There has been a great number of long days and nights put into the creation of Lamplighter’s first audio drama. We can’t wait for you to hear it!

Today is a big day for us at Lamplighter! I just received word that the first episode of our first radio drama is being recorded today! And with the release of our promotional short film “Defy the Darkness,” the launch of a newly designed and upgraded webstore, as well as the launch of this blog, the word “busy” becomes rather inadequate! God has opened many doors, and windows, over the past few months and much has happened. Mark Hamby, the president of Lamplighter, has accounted for much of it in his blog and I would encourage you to take a look at what’s been happening.

If you’re not already on our Prayer Partners e-mail list, please considers signing up to offer your support in prayer. I’d also like to recommend that you subscribe to this blog’s RSS feed to receive the most up-to-date news and info about Lamplighter Theatre. More info on RSS and other auto-update options here. Please check back often for news, images, and video from the journey with Lamplighter Theatre.