The Manti Pageant (as we know it) will end in 2019 and the Hill Cumorah Pageant will follow soon after in 2020. The announcements follow an official statement released Saturday by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints indicating that large productions like pageants are now “discouraged.” Here is the Newsroom statement in full:
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is growing across the earth. As this occurs, local Church leaders and members are encouraged to focus on gospel learning in their homes and to participate in Sabbath worship and the Church’s supporting programs for children, youth, individuals and families. The goal of every activity in the Church should be to increase faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and to share His gospel message throughout the world. Local celebrations of culture and history may be appropriate. Larger productions, such as pageants, are discouraged. As it relates to existing pageants, conversations with local Church and community leaders are underway to appropriately end, modify or continue these productions.
According to Rochester’s Democrat and Chronicle, the Hill Cumorah Pageant public affairs director, Amanda Lonsberry, explained, “…Church leadership made the decision after an extensive review of all pageants.” She continued, “Leaders said they took under consideration how to reduce the burden of church member time commitments, cost, security, impact to church sites and more in their decision.”
In the case of the Hill Cumorah Pageant, another factor could’ve been decreasing attendance and proselytizing benefits. Earlier this year, the Salt Lake Tribune reported that in 1997 the event drew 73,000 attendees including 35,000 non-members. In that year, about 2,400 referrals were collected by missionaries. Contrast that with this past summer, when there were only about 25,000 attendees, most of whom were members of the Church. Missionaries were forbidden from attending the event.
According to the Deseret News, church sponsorship of the Manti pageant will end in 2019, but the community is working to keep the pageant alive in some form. A local stake president talked with the newspaper,
“We’re going to continue to move forward through 2019 and probably make some adjustments in the way we … go about our production in advertising and casting and in delivering the pageant,” President Olson said.
“There will be some modifications. We are currently planning further discussions with various local leaders, the pageant presidency and others.”
The same Deseret News article reported that the Nauvoo Pageant would be unaffected. The fates of the Church’s other four big pageants have not been announced (British Pageant, Castle Valley Pageant, Clarkston Pageant, and Mesa Easter Pageant).
What are your thoughts on the announced changes?
Lead image from LDS Media Library.
Wheat & Tares 
I’ve seen only the Manti Pageant – long ago. I was not impressed. However, there are many who have been moved by several of the pageants. Since I know nothing of the costs and burdens, I can’t comment appropriately on the big pageants.
However, the “trek” events are also sort of pageants. Can we please discontinue those?
I am all for it! I think the pageants are a bit cringeworthy anyway and I won’t miss them. I can see a lot of reasons for discontinuing or scaling back, and one of them, I hope, is a move away from Mormon culture that masquerades as gospel. We can feel touched really anywhere when we are in a spiritual mindset, even when watching what is basically an outdated, silly high school play with a lot of heart and some cool effects.
Regardless, I probably would avoid going these days due to lack of reliable security and the huge risk involved in this society of daily mass shootings. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this is a factor in the decision.
Yes. Ends Treks. Please.
Seems like we are finding out in short order what all the bees are in President Nelson’s bonnet. This one is a surprise though – unlike “Mormon,” I don’t think he’s mentioned it publicly before.
For members here in Europe, this is a cultural tradition we have no awareness of. I think it is a good thing to revise all cultural habits and get rid of the ones that are unnecessary or just plain silly. It may end up to involve a very long list of changes, I am afraid.
My initial gut reaction is that this *might* be the biggest “change” we have yet seen from from RMN because these pageants are part of a larger culture of religious travel and vacations, particularly throughout the Mormon corridor. Once stopped, the pageants are unlikely to start again (unlike resistance to a nickname). Combining elders and high priests might be a bigger change, maybe; the jury is still out on that one.
People get up in testimony meeting and talk about how they went on a sort of pilgrimage to see the manti / hill cumorah / nauvoo pageants and what a great experience it was. There is at least one pageant not mentioned in the OP (the kind of weird “Martin Harris” pageant in Cache Valley) which makes me wonder if there are more, smaller pageants and what will happen to them. These pageants are one of the uniquely “Mormon” things that make Even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints different from other denominations. It’s like losing road shows all over again.
My impression of these pageants is that they are a substantial source of uncorrelated material. I seem to remember that the Manti pageant claimed, based on some quote, that Moroni literally walked in that valley where the manti temple now sits, with the gold plates, which were later found in New York. Depending on your theory of BoM geography, Moroni may also have brought the plates north from Central America. Skeptics find this difficult to believe, to put it lightly, but because the pageant is not sourced from official material from the curriculum / correlation department, they may have difficulty correcting it if they want to.
I’ll add my voice to those calling for an end to trek. That is a form of ancestor worship that has seriously gotten out of control. After our stake did Trek the Fast and Testimony meeting became a Trekimony meeting mostly about the women’s pull, which is something that literally didn’t happen in real life.
Rockwell, “There is at least one pageant not mentioned in the OP (the kind of weird “Martin Harris” pageant in Cache Valley)…” That’s the Clarkston Pageant.
As one who grew up in Sanpete, and was there for the very first Mormon (CONCOLDS) Miracle at the fairgrounds across from the temple, this is interesting news. I grew up on that pageant, and saw it grow from nothing to a few locals showing up at the base of the hill in the alfalfa field with their lawn chairs and a few lights in the trees with Maxine Rux reading the script live, to cutting the trees and relandscaping the hill. I was with many of those locals as we traveled to Provo to record the original soundtrack and which many of those voices still exist in today’s production. I knew Grace Johnson who wrote the story.
Not all change is bad, but in the present onslaught of white-bread General Conference talk anecdotes, glossy and generic church publications, and cookie-cutter chapel designs, my vote is to keep Mormonism weird (but end treks).
And when I say weird, I mean in a quirky roadshow or pageant sort of way, not in a we-still-dont-like-gays or stop-calling-us-Mormons kind of way.
I don’t support this change at all. A friend said LDS leaders are gutting the ties that bind community together. I agree. This seems a recipe of disaster, and does not strengthen testimonies. I don’t get it.
It seems the bean counters don’t understand church culture.
Mary Ann, Thank you for the clarification. Clarkston is mentioned in the OP.
This is fantastic! Pageants are, like so much of our cultural Mormonism, an anachronism. They have no currency in our world and are, as mentioned in an earlier comment, entirely cringeworthy. I mean, have you actually *seen* any of these? The Manti and Palmyra pageants especially are a parade of offensive stereotypes, outdated cultural references, inaccurate history and false doctrine. So thrilled to see them go. Please, let Trek follow swiftly on their heels…
That said, I do agree with you MH. There is now very little to bind us together as a community outside our Sunday meetings. It is unfortunate that we tend to jettison old programs without considering whether there is something valuable which could serve as a replacement. I would love to see a similarly unifying community event spring up to take the place of pageants.
Pageants, in their current form, are a time drain for all involved. That was probably worth it for at least some pageants years ago. The concept of a pageant has been in decline for decades, as film making has become more accessible and people become less accustomed to the style of a pageant. Attendance has been in decline and returns on the significant time commitment have been diminishing. I suspect that the Easter Pageant in Mesa will continue, as it still draws large numbers and is a good missionary opportunity. I wouldn’t be surprised, though, if it began to change into something more like a concert, or some other form that is more accessible to modern audiences. Manti has drawn people as an oddity because of its weirdness, which I don’t think is worth the effort.
As for treks, I credit mine with building a testimony at a crucial time and helping me make life long friends. I don’t know that it needs to be trek, but a significant stake activity that requires sacrifice and commitment needs to continue.
The British Pageant is really fairly recent. We’ve yet to go and see it. I imagine it’s a huge commitment for members locally though, to take part, and likely to be exhausting over the long term, if it continues to performed in the same place (Preston temple) each time. I believe it’s been put on every two years rather than every year, but the site on lds.org doesn’t given any indication I can find as to when it began, and I can’t remember.
For all those who were raised with yearly opportunities to attend the pageants, (like living in NYC and never visiting Lady Liberty) it’s no big deal. But for converts families like mine, we do not approve of this decision. The two pageants presented in Nauvoo this summer were greatly enjoyed; for our kids it was the highlight of our visit. We have already talked about a future vacation in Palmyra to coincide with their pageant.
So, to the ones who don’t like the pageants, won’t miss them, and support the change, I say STAY AT HOME. Nobody’s making you attend. The same goes for the leadership. Next thing you know, the Mormon (oops!) Tabernacle Choir will be history. . How many out there are thinking “hey, good idea!”
As to whether the hey day of pageants has been and gone, a couple of years ago we did go and see a fairly new pageant in the north-east of England, whilst on holiday there. A romp through a (highly inaccurate – of necessity 2000 years in 30 minutes or so) history of that part of the country, though a lot of fun, with spectacular special effects. The sheep especially seemed to be enjoying themselves. (https://www.kynren.com/)
If you object to trekking simply keep your kids at home.
A few more comments after re-reading the official statement: there’s no way anyone could think that gospel learning in the home or church attendance could replace what one can receive from viewing these pageant productions (or movies, for that matter).
As for youth programs, my 12-yr-old son is the only active YM; so youth activities are now controlled by the YW, and Scouts are soon to be a thing of the past, just as he’s old enough to reap the full experience .
Alice, your point is well taken, but my kids will be pressured by leaders to go and I may be asked to help. I will decline to help, unless my kids decide to go. For the most part my kids will decide for themselves whether to participate, but either way we will have to listen to all the Trekimonies afterwards.
As with most church related activities, the amount of focus and preparation, (and perhaps virtue signaling) that is given to trek in the months that lead up to it and weeks that follow make it more complicated than simply keeping your kids home.
Of course they’ll be pressured! What happens in this church that isn’t group pressured?
But the point is, people DO have agency. Use it!
I recall attending the pageant held behind the LDS Visitor’s Center in Independence, Missouri, many years ago. Lots of burning buildings and Mormons being driven out of their homes during cold winter nights by crazed Jackson County gentiles.. May have been some “tar and feathering” as well. I remember thinking at the time what interesting PR that was for the LDS church. The pageant was quietly discontinued years ago. Now the church sponsors July 4th fireworks. Wonder if that’s on the chopping block, too.
Hedgehog, from what I can see the British Pageant was originally performed in 2013 and was brought back in 2017. I can’t tell if it was done in 2018, though. https://web.archive.org/web/20170810083110/https://www.deseretnews.com/article/865686177/UK-Mormons-renew-British-Pageant-with-Elder-Ballard-in-the-audience.amp
No nothing in 2018, though I thought there was something in 2015. Might be wrong though. Thanks Mary Ann.
My thought is that it’s about freaking time. We went to the Manti pageant one year and I don’t know that I’ve ever witnessed a more cringe-worthy performance on any stage. I’m not a fan of RMN, but I think this call is the right one. The version of the pageant I saw (2016) was so riddled with just wrong information and anachronisms and all kinds of stuff that I can’t believe anyone who’s serious about investigating the church wouldn’t have grave reservations after seeing it. It’s an unfortunate phenomenon that an extremely insular culture’s sense of pride over its pageants or history or whatever is often misplaced and makes it difficult to approach or view such things as the Manti pageant objectively. I see these pageants as just another blindspot regarding the myth of Mormon exceptionalism.
Of note, Nelson years ago mentioned that, in college, he was asked to be part of a musical. He stated that he declined because he wanted to pass biology, rather than be part of “some play”. By chance, could this be another manifestation of his personal hostility to the arts?
I attended the manti pageant a couple decades back with a couple of friends, one of whom was a non-member. I was horrified and embarrassed by the pageant, and our non-member friend was bewildered and slightly offended. I appreciate that it involved a lot of work for everyone who participated, but boy howdy it was a lousy missionary tool at least in my experience. I actually told my LDS friend that if I’d seen the pageant prior to joining the church, I don’t think I would’ve run away but I would’ve definitely felt put off.
Steve, while I see and do understand your reservations about Nelson (I have my own), I really doubt he hates the arts so fiercely and is so petty that he’d cancel entire pageants on a whim. He’s not a CEO or a king, he has a whole quorum that discusses issues that are important to him and they make most, of not all, decisions as a group. Also, I hope people judge me too harshly when I’m in my 90’s by something honest and completely harmless that I said 70 years ago.
Bring back the arts!
Brigham Said that if he had to teach people, he would straightway build a theater. Joseph had the theater in Nauvoo built first. Mankind’s highest worship is art. Mankind’s greatest achievement is art.
Art is powerful- art is our heartbeat- art is God’s fire, laughter, word; if we lose or stifle the arts, we suffocate.
Our art also humanizes us- celebrates our culture and builds bridges.
Art also requires sacrifice, patronage, investment, practice, discipline, and most of all- it requires community, else it becomes the proverbial tree falling in the woods.
The silence from awkwardly ending music makes me look out the window at the looming storm.
Steve,
President Nelson is a known long-term supporter of the performing arts in Salt Lake City. Your criticism is misplaced. The pageants have been declining in quality and effectiveness as a proselyting tool. Let them go.
Oddly enough, I found the Clarkston pageant considerably more touching or spiritual than the Hill Cumorah pageant. Hill Cumorah seemed “over the top” and spectacular, no doubt about it, but it didn’t send chills up my spine like the Clarkston pageant which focuses on the witnesses, Martin Harris more specifically, of the Book of Mormon.
Old man,
Irrelevant! I don’t care whether the GAs are patrons of arts in their local neighborhoods if they make policies that remove art from 16 million saints. . If the GAs assumed as you did- I would find that truly isolated and bubble thinking- inconsiderate at the best and blind at the worst to saints outside the valley.
The Independence pageant wasn’t about vilifying the local Missourians-quite the opposite. The storyline focused on a friendship between a Mormon and non-Mormon Missouri boy and their families – peaceful people living during turbulent times. It was an Olive-branch to the community. Violence from some erupts against the Mormons – and the families support each other before the Mormon family moves. It was filled with frontier culture, supported by the various restorationaist churches in the area, and included some authentic Mormon folk music from the time- now long forgotten.
Recently- the church revamped the Independence Visitors center- removing local history to proselytize and keep the “story” of the church on point- meaning simply about the gospel and not about the “things” of the past. The visitors center now includes a mini faux-rock-replica (I kid you not) of Utah’s Arches National Park as well as a replica of a modern LDS home (decorated as a Utah- not Midwest home). The family talks about their modern life (in Utah accents). Little space or attention is given to the history or relevance of Independence and surrounding areas, but the tear-jerking story of a sick child and modern-day Utah Mormon families unfolds. All the history- including playing of frontier LDS hymns and songs as well as all that bothersome millennial stuff was removed to make way for mini-Utah. Talk about cultural supremacy and bullying! I suppose there is nothing to do if SLC decides to erase the local lds history.
Mary Ann, it’s not that pageants are being eliminated, it’s just that from now on they will only be done by families at home. I think we will soon be getting a new booklet, “Come Follow Me, Pageants in the Home.” I’m sure that was a footnote in some email I’ve been sent over the last month. I’ll look for it and post a link.
I was raised by my very faithful, very poor convert mother in the eastern US. We didn’t have means to travel, so I never attended any pageant and didn’t know they existed until my mission. I gained and retain my testimony based on only the austerity of the scriptures and words of the latter-day prophets (and mostly in spite of the culture, which can be hard to understand and even harder to relate to). That basic testimony has been surprisingly resilient. I’m sure many have had spiritual experiences at pageants, and maybe some have had conversions due to an experience there. These cultural things may have power to convert some, but also have the power to repulse others (who may see them as campy, formulaic, poorly written, non-doctrinal, odd). President Nelson’s streamlining efforts will hopefully drive focus to more pure sources of doctrine that have the greatest power to convert. It’s a much more austere direction (probably boring to the theatrical) but highly effective.
Charles,
I honor your story and experiences- and acknowledge that humble seeking is more important than showboating. “showboating” the appropriate word though- as even somewhat campy musicals and low-art forms can be at times the most sincere forms of prayer.
we should realize that art can link in ways no other medium can to God. Theater, music, visual arts, dance, etc. can all be mechanisms for divine communion.
I don’t think it has to be one or the other- pious home devotion or participation in communal arts. I think it should be both, and am concerned that the position of the church seems to illogically put the two at odds. It also feels like a massive wet blanket- something that would have been done in the era of counter-reformation- an act of retrenchment.