This weekend I had planned a night with my family to attend the Mesa Easter Pageant. Over the years our family has attended the Pageant and as a young boy our church groups would go every year to experience the event. So you could say I am a little bias from past experience but I'll give you my experience this last time. For those who don't know the pageant is a live reenactment of the birth and life of Jesus Christ played over about 60 minutes. Each year there is expected over 100,000 people over the two week period.
Because the last time I saw the play I was a young boy, I didn't know when to get there to find good seats. I heard people begin showing up to the play at 5pm, which was amazing to me because it doesn't start until 8pm. I figured Thursday night wouldn't be too packed, so I headed down there at 630pm. There weren't too many people there yet so we were able to find good seats in the front left portion of the seating area. Now the waiting began.
I never have been good at sitting in one area waiting for something to start. I used to do that when the Star Wars or Lord of the Rings movies came out at midnight but after awhile I got worn down. I decided to get up and walk around to check out the surrounding area. They have a center there with all the pictures and statues of Christ in the building to the south of the play area. There were missionaries there talking to people about their church. The bathrooms were closed inside, but they had portable bathrooms out to the east of the visitor's center. The best time to use the bathrooms is at least 30 minutes before the play starts because I went back there right before and it was packed with people.
When I was younger we would sit out on the back lawn area where you can spread out blankets. For families, that is the best place to sit, although the view is not as good because it is far away from the stage. One problem I realized, people were saving seats, which is not allowed. People would come without their families to save 15-20 seats, and their families would come 20 minutes before the play. The people coming before then are out of luck. It was especially difficult when it was the last 30 minutes before the play because so many people were coming all at once. The hosts have a difficult job working with the people who are saving the seats.
The whole time I was waiting I saw large families with young kids, elderly families, and middle aged families spending time together. For me that is the purpose of the event is to bring families together. The lights go out at 8 o'clock so you will want to be in your seat then because it is hard to see when they go off. Any where you sit, the sound system is amazing. You won't have a problem hearing from anywhere in the area. The play was amazing with dancing, narrating, acting, etc. Anyone who loves theatre would enjoy the play.
The end of the play is tough, though. With around 20,000 people all bunched together it could be rather slow getting out, and if you are like me you will not want to wait. I suggest sitting in an area on the side so you can make a quick exit to get to your car to beat all the other cars out. For not having been for a few years it was a great experience with my family that I will enjoy next year. The Easter Pageant is one of those events that only takes place once a year. I would suggest to anyone to attend next year. I had a great experience and know you will too. read more