POP Goes The Nativity

Overview

Following a whole cast performance of the opening song (POP Goes The Nativity) we are welcomed by DJs Beth and Liam, hosts of the Pop Party Show on the glitteringly-glorious radio station, Bethlehem FM! They are excited to announce that there is a breaking story happening in the town, which they’ll be covering throughout their broadcast, as well as playing a selection of the most poptastic songs by the coolest, funkiest artists Bethlehem has to offer!

To give a brief background of the story to be told, the DJs welcome Mary and Gabriel to the studio. The guests explain that, some months earlier, Gabriel visited Mary to tell her she would be giving birth to God’s son, but not to be afraid! To provide a bit more detail, the duo moves to the live lounge to perform a catchy song (He Has Chosen You) for the lucky (lucky, lucky) listeners! They both then have to dash – Gabriel to undertake another job and Mary to join her husband, Joseph, stuck in a traffic jam on the Bethlehem ring-road, along with many other travellers arriving in town for a new census.

We next hear from travel reporter, Dusty Lane, who is in amongst the gridlocked throng on the ring road. She speaks to Joseph who is concerned about finding a room for the night, because (as we know) his wife Mary is about to have a baby. Fortunately, they have reliable and dependable transport in the form of a new donkey, which has made the journey a lot easier than expected. In praise of the animal, and of the other donkeys helping to carry the many travellers, we are treated to a classic soul song (D-O-N-K-E-Y) that is guaranteed to get all feet (and hooves) stamping!

Beth and Liam then throw open the studio lines for listeners to get in touch about the situation developing in Bethlehem. They speak to three innkeepers who are delighted that business is booming. However, with rooms in short supply, there are some travellers who look like they’ll be left out in the cold. (song – Just Can’t Find A Room)

In the next segment of the show, the ‘Reflection Section’, we hear a touching message from one of the innkeepers, who tells Beth, Liam and the listeners how he took pity on two of the travellers, Mary and Joseph. Seeing that they desperately needed a room, but having none to spare, he offered them his stable. The couple settle in for the night and, to the sound of a well-known song (Away In A Silent Manger) the holy baby, whom Mary names Jesus, is born.

Weather reporter, Gail Tempest, is next up with news of unseasonal temperatures and strange cloud patterns in the skies above the Bethlehem hills. As she interviews a group of shepherds to get their take on things, they are visited by Gabriel and a magnificent host of angels, who tell them that a new king is born tonight and that they should visit the stable where He lies, to worship Him. If the mere sight of the heavenly group doesn’t convince the shepherds, the thumping track the angels deliver (Glory To God) is bound to do the trick!

Finally, foreign correspondent, Wanda Miles, joins the broadcast to report on the arrival in town of three special visitors from a distant land. On interviewing these wise, noble and (let’s face it) very groovy strangers, she discovers they have been led here by a new star that foretold the birth of Jesus (song – Light Up The Sky). Arriving at the stable, they too kneel in worship, giving the baby gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

With the tableau of recognisable Nativity characters gathered, we come to the end of Beth and Liam’s Pop Party! The hosts bid the Bethlehem FM listeners farewell, wish us a Merry Christmas and get everybody on their feet for a reprise of POP Goes the Nativity.