Faces and Places Ministries has been working hard on its upcoming fall production since the middle of summer.
However, the show will soon become a reality as this marvelous team of Christian performers presents a comical look at one of the scriptures most well-known stories, the story of Moses.
Although many of the characters bear a striking resemblance to those on television’s longest running westerns, the story itself is straight out of the Bible, well, almost.
Badly mistreated slaves are building a railroad for big, bad John Pharaoh (Frank Filkosky of Altoona) and his saloon-keeper wife, Phanny (Brandy Russell of Tyrone) when Moses (Jim Beatty of Tyrone) is forced to flee from Egypt County after killing one of Pharaoh’s guards.
Moses flees to Midian only to find some young, little prairie girls being robbed by a band of hoodlums who are stealing their water – Sue Bess, played by Sabrina Filkosky of Altoona, Mary Katherine, played by Kathleen Beck, Sally Mae, played by Bethany Liddick, and Lucy, played by Jessica Liddick all of Tyrone.
They introduce him to their sister Little Bird (Racheal Shaffer of Hollidaysburg) who he falls in love with and marries in Midian before God, speaking through a burning bush (with a western accent!), sends him and his brother, Aaron (Drew Baker of Tyrone) back to Pharaoh to “Let my people go.”
Aaron and Moses begin their journey back to Egypt and march right into Pharaoh’s Tomb Saloon looking for John Pharaoh when they are introduced to others in Egypt County.
Betsy Beck, Jennifer Liddick, and Pastor Talbot-Moses all from Tyrone, turn the story for a comical loop as these women serve as Miss Phanny’s saloon girls, as well as the town beauticians.
John Pharaoh won’t give up in letting God’s people go, so Aaron and Moses are forced into jail by Mr. Pharaoh’s guard Clem (Erik Baker of Tyrone).
A special person in Moses’ life then enters the story to rescue them from jail, so they can go to Mr. Pharaoh one more time. This time they find Mr. Pharaoh in the Curl Up and Dye Beauty Salon where he and the beauticians are fighting off the plague of Locust that God has sent to Egypt County. Those bad folks in Egypt County promise to listen to God if he gets rid of the Locusts. The Locusts flee but no one listens to God’s command.
When Mr. Pharaoh disobeyed God, God set out killing all the babies in the land. Those who marked their doorposts with blood would be passed over, those who weren’t marked, had their babies’ lives taken from them.
This still didn’t get Mr. Pharaoh’s attention, so Moses and Aaron set the people free and led them to the shores of the Big Red Lake. There they were stuck! What do they do now?
From the first “Howdy, folks!” on, the story is narrated by the Old Storyteller, played by Linda Filkosky of Altoona. She brings the story to life as she narrates it and sometimes just enters into the story herself to play various roles in the story she is trying to tell.
“Exodus from Egypt County” is a wonderful adventure, and audiences find it a delightful experience.
The production will be performed tomorrow at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and on Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Christ United Methodist Church on the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 14th Street.
Come join the fun and wholesome entertainment, with a message.
