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Three nights a week inside the doors of the Nazareth Baptist Church, 1009 S. Third St., a group of people can be found rehearsing to change the lives of others through theater.
Though independent from the church, the troupe has held various performances and gospel showcases there over the years, drawing crowds of members and non-members to the sanctuary. Earlier this year, they embarked on a project they think redefines people’s conceptions of theater.
Each month the cast — which varies with up to 15 members — presents an episode of "30 Seconds Left," a live, dramatic series structured like a TV show centered around the lives of a group of Philadelphians and their faith. Like all other performances by Eyes on You Productions — an independent performing arts production company founded in 2003 — it was written by Cynthia McKnight, wife of Warren, the church’s pastor. McKnight penned "30 Seconds Left" as one piece, but decided to break it down into nine, 30- to 40-minute segments, to be performed monthly, creating an entertainment series that keeps peopling wanting more — and coming back to get it.
"We wanted to give people something to do once a month and get out of house," said Eyes on You Production Vice President Elise Barnett, who helped McKnight write the work.
"That’s where we got the idea of having a series live and onstage. If we can build a rapport with viewers, if we could grab their attention, our hope was that they’d come back every month."
And since the episodes started in February, that is exactly what’s happened. Up to 300 people have turned out each performance weekend for one of the Friday or Saturday night shows. Many are church members, but just as many have not been — at least before watching the show.
"We’re not just acting," Omar Richard, a minister at the church, resident of Queen Village and a cast member, said. "People are looking for help, but they’re going about it the wrong way. Through our acting, it allows us to change their destination from a lifetime in hell to a lifetime in heaven." Both Barnett and Richard said there have been numerous times where an audience member has watched an episode and been so inspired, they joined the church after having been non-denominational.
Many more simply relate to what they’re watching and have formed a connection with the production.
"The beautiful thing is some of the parents of the children we watch during the day [at the church’s daycare center], they’ve come over just to support us," Barnett said. "We’re seeing their lives are being changed because of [the show]. It’s beautiful when they come up to me and say, ‘The situation they talked about onstage is something I’ve been going through.’"
The scenes portrayed are ones the cast members can relate to, as well. The dialogue touches on drugs, violent crime, teen pregnancy and death. In just three episodes, bullets have been fired on account of drug dealing.
Barnett said one of the main lessons to learn with "30 Seconds Left" is while we may not share a bloodline, we all share the bond of being here together and our lives can affect one another on many levels.
"There’s a lot of crime in our city, unfortunately," she said. "We’re killing each other and we’re related. We have to look at each other as if we’re family, that might give us the incentive to put the guns down."
Cast member Kevin Sims is living proof of the success. After running into trouble while spending time on the streets, he was arrested and nearly sentenced to jail. When he won his case, he turned to the church located across the street from where the 25-year-old grew up. In February — just three months after he became a member — he was approached by McKnight and her husband about joining the cast.
"[McKnight] said, ‘I have a character that would be perfect for you,’" Sims said. "I said, ‘I can’t act,’ and she said I should give it a shot. I memorized the script and the rest is history."
Sims plays Brucey, a troubled boy raised by an older woman. For the remaining six episodes, a series of unexpected events, including dealing with death, causes each character to question their faith.
Sims also raps in each episode, usually after a powerful scene, adding his take on the events unfolding through another medium the audience cam relate to.
"The whole thing is real and realistic," he said of what the performers and audience members get out of it, especially when they get the chance to talk about the performance afterward.
"This play is really relevant. I come from some of the stuff we perform and to see it pan out, it keeps me motivated, interested and busy enough to stay out of what I got into a few years ago."
Today, he works as a cook in a nearby deli and is enrolled at the Art Institute to start next month in the digital filmmaking program.
The next episode "airs" 8 p.m. June 27 and 28 outside of the church for the first time. The new home in an auditorium at the High School of the Future in West Philadelphia has more space, Barnett said, and although it’s moved out of the neighborhood she feels the audience will only continue to grow.
"A lot of people [were] leery of coming because it [was] in a church," she said. "We’re trying to target people who don’t go to church. We decided if we took it outside, maybe our target audience would be more comfortable with coming."
Tickets range from $20 to $30 for the tiered-seating event and all proceeds go to the church. So far they’ve raised about $3,000.
Its name was derived from the members’ motto of making decisions as if you have 30 seconds left to live, emphasizing that life can come and go very quickly and each decision could be your last.
"We’re not promised each day," Barnett said. "Anything can happen. The decisions we make in life have to be thought out; You may only have 30 seconds left in the rest of your life."
Contact Staff Writer Caitlin Meals at cmeals@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117.
