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Poetter Hall was purchased by the SCAD founders in March 1979. Classes began in September of that year.  
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Trivial Pursuits

Trivial Pursuits
 
Green steps back in time for church event


 


By Monique Bos
Published: Friday, December 2, 2005

Savannah College of Art and Design publications editor Emily Green is moonlighting this month — as a merchant in an ancient Middle Eastern marketplace.

Green, along with approximately 1,000 other people from Savannah Christian Church, is involved in “The Journey,” an interactive interpretation of the birth of Jesus as told in the New Testament. Visitors are assigned tribes, identities and family histories and provided with “tax money,” she explained. In tribes of 30-35 people, they then embark on a journey meant to reflect that of the Magi in the Bible.

“The goal is to make people coming to it feel like they’re a part of it,” Green said. “It makes [the story] a lot more real to people. It almost becomes mythical because it’s told so much.”

Visitors travel through a series of vignettes and scenes that lead them to Bethlehem. When they reach the city gate, they pay taxes and are counted for the census — and then they enter the marketplace, which is where Green and her colleagues come in.

“It’s really authentic looking,” she said. “Everyone is in period dress. There’s a bread shop, a blacksmith shop, live animals, fresh produce. It’s our job to pull them in and make them feel like they’re part of the time.”

She added, “I think the marketplace is one of the most fun roles because you’re ad libbing.” While hawking wares such as bread, baskets and pottery, she has the opportunity to interact and chat with visitors — as long as she remains in character. When teenagers come in wearing headphones, for example, she and other cast members ignore the technology.

“The Journey” runs Nov. 30 - Dec. 4 and Dec. 7-11 at Savannah Christian Church, 55 Al Henderson Blvd. Tickets cost $5 apiece and can be purchased between 6-8 p.m. at the event or online at www.savannahchristian.com. For those who have to wait in line, the church choir performs a rotating set of songs in the auditorium.

“You’re either out on ‘The Journey’ or you’re hearing the choir sing, and they are insanely good,” Green said.

“The Journey” isn’t her only involvement with Savannah Christian Church, however — or the only way she has stepped into someone else’s shoes. She also participates in LateCHURCH, a service held downtown at 7:01 p.m. Sundays in the Savannah Theater on Chippewa Square. The service, offered through Savannah Christian Church, was started in July 2004 to appeal to the downtown community, particularly college students, Green said. However, it also proved to attract another segment of the population — homeless people. As a result, church members began to reach out by providing meals, clothes and other supplies, and encouragement.

Green is among a number of volunteers who bring bag lunches once a month for homeless people to eat on Sunday evenings. She said 25-50 people usually enjoy the meals, and many stay for the church service, though that isn’t a requirement.

“We get information from them — if they need clothes, shoes, whatever — and then we meet that need the following weekend,” she explained. “It’s also getting them hooked up with the Old Savannah Mission … I think some of them have gone through the class there and ended up getting off the street.”

She said her contribution is a result of her spiritual beliefs.

“I feel like if I’m going to really follow what Jesus taught, that’s part of it — feeding the poor, serving others,” she explained. “That’s my motivation behind it. A lot of times, as far as making a statement about your faith, it’s a lot more effective to do it through action.”

It also has changed her perspective.

“What I’ve learned from it is how we are all really on the same level whether or not we live in a house,” she said. “They’re looking for the same fulfillment everyone else is. I’m more conscious of walking through squares, seeing homeless people, knowing that they could be coming on Sunday night and just saying, ‘Hi,’ or ‘Have a good day,’ or whatever.