Muddy Creek Baptist Church, located at 3470 Trenholm Road in Powhatan, presents ‘’The Nativity,’’ a live nativity pageant on Thursday, Dec. 21. The pageant will be under the stars at the church at 6, 7 and 8 p.m. The event is free and all are invited to attend. 

A HISTORY OF THE LIVE NATIVITY 

Muddy Creek Baptist Church has been telling the Gospel story since 1774 when the church was first formed. The church continues spreading the story today with its live nativity pageant. 

The Live Nativity began in the early 80’s with a cast of 12 and a small stage crew. This was the vision of Donnie Hatcher, who arranged and produced the twenty-two minute pageant on a cassette tape. Dick Carr and Leslie Boatwright gave the story life with their voices. The pageant’s first location was a small barn and field behind the old Trenholm Post Office at the intersection of Trenholm and Ballsville Roads. Buddy and Donna Kidder used to open up their home for three nights to help the crew prepare to tell this miraculous story. It all began with two shows on the 22nd and 23rd, and one show on the 24th. 

Later, in 1996, Hatcher and the Songwriters Workshop in downtown Cartersville put the arrangement on a CD. This time the narration was recorded by Lewis Bryant and Leslie Boatwright Lingenfelser. On Dec. 9, 2001, the pageant was given the opportunity to share the story during the Grand Illumination at the James Center in Richmond at the Riverfront Plaza. 

Years later the pageant moved to the field beside the old Muddy Creek School House and then eventually to where it is held today. With over 30 cast members and numerous others working behind the scenes, the pageant is held every year to remind us of the glorious birth of Jesus Christ. 

Over four decades performing in the rain, sleet, fog, wind and snow, there have only been a few times the weather was too severe for the show to go on.