First Baptist Church performed Living Pictures every year for several years, beginning when the chuch was still located on south Swinton Avenue, and continuing at the new location, 16333 S. Military Trail.  The performances were suspended a few years ago - hopefully not a permanent situation.  These pictures were taken during one of the later performances at the Military Trail location.  Our Minister of Music, Wes Ratliff, was the overall director of the production and was intimately involved not only with the choir, but with the orchestra, sound, and lighting as well.  Marcene Friedley was the director of the dramatic aspects - actors, props, staging, dance, and lights.  Almost everybody in the church was involved in some way, from then-Pastor, Neil Hickem, to the newest-born baby in the church family as baby Jesus.
    I ran the sound system for the performances, running down after an intermission to get into costume for my solo, Watch The Lamb.  Later, others would help with the sound: Harry Hafferkamp did it a couple of times, if I remember correctly, and church member Bill Bickford helped out as well.  And, I think, Johann Donowa was part of the sound team, too.  It was the most complicated sound system I've ever set up and run: the mains, consisting of two Electro-Voice two-way 15" cabinets; and six sub-systems: an on-stage monitor; two ceiling-mounted choir monitor systems; two cue systems for the back stage areas and another for lighting personel.  This was supplemented by a subwoofer system using an Electro-Voice S18-3 powered by a Peavey CS800 power amp.  Along with the tape sound effects, CD prelude music, headphone communication systems, effects, eight choir microphones, four solo microphones, and four wireless microphones, it was enough to keep me awake at night wondering if it was all going to work.  There were glitches, of course, some small, some large, but for such a complicated set-up, it did quite well. Living Pictures usually ran five nights, and the house was packed every night.  It was a major undertaking for such a relatively small church.
    Our present Minister of Music, Charlie Jones, has some great ideas for the future.  Perhaps Living Pictures will return, in some form.