OVERVIEW

In the year 4 BC, Israel is under the colonial rule of the Roman Empire. An unexpected visit from Roman soldiers causes pandemonium in the small town of Bethlehem. The citizens are awaiting the coming of the Messiah who will deliver them from tyranny.

Joseph and a pregnant Mary arrive in Bethlehem, and Mary immediately goes into labor. Joseph desperately searches for a place to stay, but no one opens their doors to them, leaving the two without a room. Meanwhile, John and Philip, shepherd boys, are on the plain, sleeping with their herd of sheep. Suddenly, a huge star appears in the sky and shines down on them…

DIRECTOR

Sam Fischer

PRODUCER

Gracias Choir

CAST

James Woo

Hyemi Choi

Daniel Shin

Derell E. Jones

Philip Park

Paul Lee

Musto Pelinkovicci

David Park

Antonio Garcia

MEET THE CHARACTERS

MARY

A Woman Betrothed

to Joseph. She conceives the Christ child through the Holy Spirit. Despite the many difficulties, she keeps her faith in God and believes that his will be done through her.

JOSEPH

A Carpenter,

who is native of Bethlehem. He becomes deeply troubled to find Mary, his soon-to-be wife, pregnant. However, upon realizing she was conceived through the Holy Spirit and that the child is the Messiah, he stays with her and they head over to Bethlehem together for the census.

HEROD

A Roman Client King

of Judea. He is well known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea. Yet he is an ambitious man with a violent nature, who can easily slaughter anyone to maintain his power. One day, he hears the news of the King of the Jews being born and becomes wrapped in rage and uneasiness…

ASHER

A Wool Seller

in Bethlehem, Asher is a greedy man who will do whatever it takes to make money. Although he is secretly ashamed of the things he’s done, he continues to live his life daily with only focusing on making money.…

NATHAN

An elderly man

in Bethlehem, who is a man of faith. He lives with his one and only daughter and although they may be poor, they live a happy, content life. However, the tyranny brought by the Roman soldiers leaves Bethlehem in a state of horror and Nathan begins to question his faith…

PHILIP

A Shepherd Boy,

who is John’s younger brother. Being the youngest among his family, he is loved by all of the shepherds. He is very fond of his older brother John and follows after him.

JOHN

A Young Shepherd,

who often goes to the town to sell wool. Although despised for being a shepherd, he has great respect for his grandfather and hopes to become a chief shepherd like him someday.

CONCEPT ART

TESTIMONIAL

“Who is Joanna?

I’d love to meet her.”

During the autumn of 2013, the Miami division of the Christmas Cantata received a phone call.

Rose MacFarllane, a woman in her 50s had called after receiving the letter and tickets to the Cantata, hand delivered by our team.

“People usually don’t come around this neighborhood because it’s so dangerous. People don’t even know who their neighbors are. Often times the post service will just pass by us… Yet who are you, that you have delivered this letter to me?”

The elderly lady, who couldn’t move about freely, came to the performance with her family. Then she met Joanna in person and shed tears as they hugged.

“Never in my life have I seen such beautiful performance. This is best gift ever. I’ll make sure to come again next year.”

After that, she hasn’t stopped sharing the joy she received through the Cantata to the people around her.