In the run-up to Christmas, primary schools and Sunday schools often placed on Nativity plays. This custom, nevertheless, is a surprisingly modern tradition. Here is its story.
Nativity plays
A Nativity play is a production that tells the story of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus. These plays are typically performed shortly before Christmas, either by primary schools in assembly halls or by Sunday Schools in local churches or chapels.
The word nativity entered English via Norman French from the Latin nativitas, meaning birth. The root of this word also gives us native. In English, nativity can simply mean birth, nevertheless it is frequently utilized in the context of the birth of Jesus.
Mystery plays
In medieval England, religious mystery plays brought Bible stories to life for the largely illiterate population. During a time when few could read and even fewer had access to a Bible (which was often in Latin), dramatic enactments of those stories became an efficient technique of teaching. Initially, monks performed these plays in Latin as a type of evangelism, which limited their accessibility.
In 1210, Pope Innocent III expressed concerns in regards to the popularity of mystery plays and decreed that clergy could now not participate in or write them. This effectively banned the plays of their original form. As a result, local town guilds took over and secularised the plays. Freed from clerical control, they began writing the scripts in English, which increased their popularity.
When mystery plays were performed around Christmas, they often told the story of Jesus’s birth and the encircling events.
The first Nativity play
The first Nativity play is usually attributed to St Francis of Assisi, who staged one in Greccio, Italy, in 1223. According to tradition, St Francis invited the locals to a close-by cave, where he delivered a Christmas sermon in front of a manger, complete with an actual baby, a donkey, and an ox. This portrayal of the Nativity proved so popular that it became an annual tradition, spreading throughout Europe via Franciscan monks.
However, after the Reformation, theatrical performances that took liberties with biblical texts were discouraged in Protestant Europe. In England, Puritans went to this point as to ban Christmas and Nativity plays, classifying them as sacrilegious. These plays survived only in Catholic countries. Consequently, despite their historical roots, the re-emergence of Nativity plays in Britain is a surprisingly modern phenomenon.
The London revival
The popularisation of Nativity plays in Britain is essentially credited to Laurence Housman (1865–1959). Housman wrote Bethlehem, a Nativity play adapted from a 14th-century Coventry mystery play. Set to music by Joseph Moorat and interspersed with Christmas carols, it was first performed on the University of London on Wednesday, 17 December 1902, for five nights. The play was later published as Bethlehem: A Nativity Play by Macmillan, enabling others to stage their very own productions using the script.
Housman’s play gained widespread attention within the Twenties. From December 1923, Bethlehem was performed on the Regent Theatre in King’s Cross, London, running for six weeks. It then toured the country in 1924, inspiring local productions and resulting in a national revival of Nativity plays. The Liverpool Daily Post noted in 1924: “Never because the Reformation, when things were repressed by stern measures, has there been such revival of the Nativity plays which formed so vital an element the lifetime of mediaeval England.”
The Nativity play on the BBC
The first Nativity play to be broadcast on radio was aired on Wednesday, 22 December 1926. This play, also titled Bethlehem, was adapted for radio by the Rev Bernard Walke, vicar of St Hilary’s Church in Cornwall. Performed by members of his congregation of their Cornish accents, the play was broadcast live from St Hilary’s Church. The broadcast received hundreds of supportive letters and have become a beloved annual tradition on the BBC’s Christmas radio schedule until 1936.
The modern revival
Thanks to the influence of Housman’s play and the recognition of the Nativity broadcasts, Nativity plays began to be performed more widely. By 1932, the Bucks Examiner observed: “A striking feature of the religious observance of Christmas this yr is the variety of Nativity plays being produced in so many churches across the country.”
During the Second World War, evacuee children often swelled the forged of village Nativity plays. By the Fifties, Nativity plays had grow to be a typical part of college and church life across Britain and all Christian denominations.
Nostalgia
For many children, participating in a Nativity play marks their first experience on stage. These plays are cherished for his or her charm, humour, and occasional mishaps—whether from forgotten lines or ad-libbed surprises. Many adults fondly remember their very own roles, reminiscent of a misguided innkeeper offering a room or a smart man bringing “Gold, Frankenstein, and myrrh.”
The Biblical story
Nativity plays take creative liberties to condense the biblical story. The accounts of Jesus’s birth are present in the primary two chapters of Matthew and Luke. Both gospels describe Mary’s betrothal to Joseph (Matthew 1:18, Luke 1:27), the divine conception by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18, Luke 1:35), and the angelic announcement of the name Jesus (Matthew 1:21, Luke 2:21). Both also agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem during King Herod’s reign (Matthew 2:1, Luke 2:4-7).
Luke details the angel’s announcement to Mary (Luke 1:26-56), the census, the journey to Bethlehem, and the shepherds’ visit (Luke 2:1-20). Matthew, then again, recounts the visit of the Magi, or smart men, guided by a star (Matthew 2:1-12).
Artistic licence
Artistic licence often includes animals within the Nativity scene, despite the Bible only mentioning a manger. Similarly, while the Bible doesn’t specify the variety of smart men, tradition assigns three, corresponding to their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Nativity plays typically compress the timeline, placing the Magi on the stable alongside the shepherds, although the biblical account implies they arrived much later.
Modern Nativity plays
Today, Nativity plays are a cherished tradition in British primary schools and Sunday schools. Children dress as angels, shepherds, smart men, and key figures like Mary, Joseph, and King Herod. Sometimes in addition they portray animals, reminiscent of the donkey or stable creatures.
Plays could also be narrated with mimed roles or feature spoken lines. Smaller groups might include adults to fill roles or have children tackle multiple parts. The baby Jesus is usually represented by a doll. Audiences typically consist of fogeys, grandparents, and teachers, or, within the case of church performances, congregations bolstered by family and friends.
Nativity plays have grow to be an integral a part of British culture, offering a way for even those that don’t recurrently attend church to have interaction with the biblical story.
