Love and unity
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NAUVOO, ILL.
Tens of thousands of early members of the Church gathered in faith from frontier America and foreign lands to a swamp on a bend of the Mississippi River in Illinois. Here they built a city that rivaled Chicago in size and industry, and a temple to their God, the likes of which was not to be found in 19th century America. They also built a community of love and faith where the Prophet of the Restoration would receive revelations to bless not only those early saints of Nauvoo but all mankind throughout eternity. The Prophet Joseph would say when he last looked upon the city of the saints, "This is the loveliest place and the best people under the heavens."
Each summer, tens of thousands gather to this historic town of 1,300 residents to see the story of love and unity of purpose retold on a huge stage in an outdoor theater with the rebuilt Nauvoo Temple as its backdrop. The Nauvoo Pageant, now in its fourth season of production, brings 1840s Nauvoo to life with music, dance, drama, humor and a cast of 300 in colorful period costumes. Twenty-one performances begin at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays-Saturdays, July 11 to Aug. 8.
The roles of early Nauvoo Church leaders and other prominent members are performed by a core cast of 20 professional actors who speak their lines live through cordless microphones.
This year some of the lead roles are played by actors appearing in the pageant for the first time. Jeff and Matt Dickamore from Bountiful, Utah, play Joseph Smith and his brother, Hyrum, respectively. Jeff has performed in community theater in Salt Lake City.
"I take comfort in knowing that my testimony of Jesus Christ and the Restoration of His gospel is paramount to this work," Jeff said. "Preparing for Nauvoo has taught me more about myself, Joseph Smith and my Heavenly Father than I could have imagined. I am grateful for the process and for the opportunity to serve and bear witness of that which I have always known to be true."
Matt Dickamore has performed in theater from a very young age in California, Utah, Idaho and England. He said his role as Hyrum "has helped me learn many things and gain a greater understanding of the importance Hyrum had in the restoration of the Church. He was always at Joseph's side, sharing his tremendous enlightenment as well as his burdens. I also knew that playing opposite my younger brother in such an awesome situation would help us to grow closer together."
Through the month-long pageant run, the core cast is supported by five separate family casts of about 140 each who volunteer for two weeks. In the first week they rehearse, run the pageant pre-show, and perform in the finale, and the second week they perform on stage.
About 100 additional volunteers help with the hundreds of costumes, security, children's activities, office work and stage operations, some of them serving for nearly two months. Included is a work crew of 22 young men, ages 17-19, who set up, run, maintain and strike the pageant stage and operate technical equipment.
Dozens more staff members, some of whom live in Nauvoo, work for several months on administration and public relations, preparing for each year's performance. The nearly 800 volunteers this season, serving at their own expense, come from 31 of the United States, Canada, Morocco and the United Kingdom.
"More than 180,000 volunteer hours are contributed to bring this marvelous production to the stage," said Jack Renouf, pageant president. For each of the pageant's four years, Michael and Gaylene Merchant and their seven children, ranging in age from 5 to 21, have taken their family vacation time to travel from their home in Gilbert Ariz., to serve in the family cast.
"Of all the places our children could choose to be, they want to come here," Sister Merchant said. "As a mother, nothing is more important to me than bringing my children to Christ. The Spirit is so strong here in Nauvoo as we take part in the pageant, it is the best place to submerge our children in gospel principles and strengthen their testimonies while serving others."
Perhaps key to what makes the Nauvoo Pageant touch hearts so deeply lies in an observation by Sister Merchant: "When we're here serving in the pageant we're not acting, we're recreating, both on and off the stage, the Zion society that was here before."
E-mail to: nauvoopageantpublicrelations@frontier.net
