The one in trouble is the strong Christian. The other boy in the car (Tanner) is fine and he waits at the hospital for his friends to come and they worry about their friend. Eventually, they go for a walk and come by a living nativity and they discuss the true meaning of Christmas and the gospel message with the actors playing Mary and Joseph. At the end, they see on the hospital TV that their friend died, but his organs are donated so others would live. Tanner is very emotional and believes he was given a second chance at life and he decides to give his life to Christ. There are a few scene changes, but the main scenes are the hospital waiting area and the living nativity. Some video work is needed.
Cast of 10 plus extras. (5 males, 4 females, news reporter could be either) Extras could be at the school, the hospital and the nativity.
about 30 min of dialog
CAST OF CHARACTERS:
TANNER speaks 1187 words. Being in the accident has opened his eyes to how close he came to death and that maybe God is giving him a second chance. He begins to ask questions and evolves into a seeker as he really think about spiritual things. Able to show emotions.
KATIE speaks 980 words and is a compassionate and quiet Christian until Tanner starts asking questions. Perhaps she has never really had a chance to talk about her faith much. This forces her to think about what is true and what her friends need to hear.
ALLY speaks 577 words and she is an unbeliever and a skeptic. She questions the ideas that are shared and needs proof before she will start believing. Outspoken and strong willed, with her own opinions.
CARLEIGH speaks 430 words and she is more soft-hearted, sentimental, and can cry easily. She doesn’t have a lot of knowledge about things and goes along with the crowd mostly.
BLAKE speaks 384 words and he is a pretty nice guy, with a good heart. He likes to hide his sweet side and just be one of the guys, and he spends time with Carleigh.
TV REPORTER speaks 383 words (probably can be read from cue cards or a paper) and just plays it like a news man.
SAWYER speaks 268 words and is the strongest Christian in the bunch. He is not afraid to speak out about Jesus and at the same time, he is a lot of fun to be around and everyone likes him and wants to be his friend. He’s Tanner’s best friend.
JOSEPH speaks 214 words and he is mature and knows what he’s talking about. Strong Christian who is not afraid to share his faith and witness.
MARY speaks 182 words and like Joseph, wants to use this as an opportunity to share Christ. She knows how to drive the message home and make people think about what she is saying in just a few words.
SHEPHERD speaks 91 words and joins in on the conversation to add to what is already being said.
Excerpt:
SCENE ONE: The scene opens at the school near the risers where the choir is presenting the Holiday Musical. OPENING SONG: As the students begin to walk away, there are several shouts of “see you next year!” and “Merry Christmas!” Sawyer starts to walk away when Tanner approaches. TANNER Sawyer! Dude! Wait up! SAWYER Hey, Tanner. Glad that’s over? TANNER Man…you can say that again! These things are always so lame! SAWYER What are ya doing now? TANNER I dunno. Just hang out for awhile, I guess. Katie and Ally approach KATIE You guys ready for Christmas? TANNER Not even! KATIE We were going to head over to the mall and do some shopping, ya wanna come? TANNER And go shopping with a couple of girls? ALLY You don’t have to shop with us! SAWYER Hey, we should do it! The mall is a great place to hang out. I’ll get one of those fabulous shakes! Chocolaty goodness! I can taste it now! TANNER Okay… I just don’t want to be dragged into any girls’ clothing stores. ALLY Yeah…and wait for us outside the girl’s dressing room, so we can come out and model our clothes for you. TANNER That ain’t gonna happen! Blake and Carleigh approach CARLEIGH What did you guys think of the show? SAWYER The one we just did? CARLEIGH (Sarcastic) No…the one we did last year! TANNER It was lame. Lame…lame…lame! As always. CARLEIGH Really? I liked it. TANNER You would. SAWYER Hey… I guess it had it’s merits. TANNER It’s what? SAWYER It’s good points, you brainiac! It had some cool songs. I just think it’s too bad that you can’t sing about Jesus in the school program. BLAKE (Starts singing badly) …Silent Night…. SAWYER Hey…there are some good songs about Jesus’ birth that are really cool. It is what Christmas is all about you know. KATIE Sawyer is right. We sing a bunch of cool Christmas songs at my church. SAWYER You know, most of the stuff we have to sing at school is pretty boring. They’re just afraid to say anything about Jesus because someone is going to be offended. ALLY My dad would be. He gets all worked up all the time about the evangelicals and the right wings and stuff like that. SAWYER It’s crazy! God is so awesome and it is so cool to be a Christian. People are just blind. CARLEIGH Can we change the subject? KATIE Well, we were just asking the guys if they wanted to go to the mall. CARLEIGH The mall! Yes! Let’s do it! Do you want to Blake? BLAKE (To Sawyer and Tanner) Are you guys going? SAWYER Yeah…cuz we want some chocolaty goodness! TANNER And we’re not going to hang out in girls’ dress shops. SAWYER We’re just going to hang out. Maybe we could do some video games at the arcade? BLAKE Okay… sounds cool. Let’s do it. I’m ready to do some Christmas shopping anyway. CARLEIGH You’re actually going to shop? BLAKE It’s the mall. I have money. SAWYER Money? Hey! Chocolaty goodness for everyone! BLAKE I didn’t say I was buying you guys chocolate shakes! SAWYER But we have to celebrate that the boring Christmas concert is finally over and Christmas break is here! ALLY You’re supposed to call it Winter Break, or Holiday Break. SAWYER If you take Christ out of Christmas, you’re left with just MUS! CARLEIGH What? TANNER Don’t let him get on his soap box! KATIE Well, if we’re going to do this…let’s go. We need to make the best of our time. This will probably be the last time we see each other till after Christmas and New Year’s. CARLEIGH Oh, that’s so sad….you’re gonna make me cry. SAWYER You’ll get over it. ALLY Come on…you can cry in the locker room. I want to change out of these clothes. KATIE I know…I’m not going to the mall in this! SAWYER Yeah…we’re going to change, too. I can’t wait to get out of these duds! Should we meet back here? Then…hey…how are we going?… I got a car, but I can’t take all six of us. CARLEIGH I gotta car, too. Girls with me and boys with you? SAWYER Sounds like a plan to me! Last one there buys the chocolate shakes! (Starting to exit) I can taste it now! Chocolaty goodness! They all exit.
Later…
KATIE
Tanner! How is he?
TANNER
I don’t get too much information. His parents keep coming and going, and they keep me informed. He’s in intensive care.
KATIE
So you’re just sitting here by yourself?
TANNER
Yeah, pretty much. I think those people over there are related to Sawyer.
(Motions to someone offstage)
They just keep praying all the time.
KATIE
Yeah, me too.
TANNER
My folks were here, and when I got released, I said I wanted to stay. So, they went home.
KATIE
I called a bunch of people. I don’t know if any of them will come down.
TANNER
I’m glad you came, Katie. (Pause) I just can’t believe this is happening.
They both sit down just as
Carleigh and Ally enter.
CARLEIGH
Tanner! What in the world is going on?
ALLY
How is Sawyer?
They both stand up again.
KATIE
He’s in intensive care.
TANNER
He’s in critical condition.
CARLEIGH
(Very serious)
Oh…do you think he could…?
TANNER
Yeah…I do.
The girls react dramatically and emotionally.
KATIE
Let’s not talk about that. We need to stay positive.
CARLEIGH
Well, what happened? All I heard was a car crash.
TANNER
We were going down Broadway…probably too fast…and suddenly this car slams into us. He ran a red light on North Blvd. They’ve determined that he was drunk. He’s in here someplace, too.
CARLEIGH
How come you didn’t get hurt?
TANNER
I don’t know! I just have some cuts. See this one here?
Shows them the cut on his face.
ALLY
Does it hurt?
TANNER
No. Not really. Sawyer got it real bad. That car just slammed right into him. When I looked over at him… I thought he was dead.
Blake enters with some flowers.
BLAKE
Hey guys. Any news?
CARLEIGH
You brought flowers? How sweet!
BLAKE
My mom made me stop and pick them up. They’re from our whole family…not just me.
CARLEIGH
We should do that.
BLAKE
Tanner…any changes since the last time we talked?
Tanner just shakes his head.
ALLY
Look at Tanner’s scar.
BLAKE
It don’t look that bad. Dude! You’re probably lucky to be alive.
TANNER
I know.
BLAKE
Has anyone been in to see him?
KATIE
We can’t go in. He’s in ICU. They don’t allow visitors.
BLAKE
Not even his family?
KATIE
Well, they’re in there, I guess. His parents. You’ll probably have to hang on to those flowers until we can find a nurse to take them in for you.
TANNER
Oh, I forgot to tell you guys…Sawyer’s pastor came in and he talked with me for a minute. He’s really nice. I think he might be with his parents now.
BLAKE
Is anyone keeping us informed as to his condition?
KATIE
Sawyer’s folks come out once in a while to let Tanner know… and those people over there.
ALLY
So…now what do we do?
wesage –
Thank you so much for the script, Second Chances! I really appreciate how you let me read through it before purchasing it. Everyone liked the script a lot; some of the teens made some really positive comments about its message and impact. We are excited about doing it and praying that it will help unbelievers who are in church for our special Christmas service examine their lives and the claims of the Gospel. I enjoyed hearing your evident enthusiasm for God and for using your writing to glorify Him and teach His Word. I look forward to buying and using more of your scripts in the future. The Lord knew I needed some kind and friendly words (as well as a good yet affordable Christmas drama) and used you to provide them. Thanks for being His instrument. Stay strong in the Lord,
Paulette Cross, Lowville, NY
wesage –
The play was quite successful. I was very pleased how it turned out. I got a number of positive responses. After the play, one person told me that he was emotionally struck during the newscast when Sawyer’s death was broadcast. I can remember the impact that it had on me when I first read the script. Our pastor did a great job after the play of sharing the gospel and relating it to second chances (which are available until death). We have already been perusing your site looking for Easter plays. Thank you again!
Tim Pau, Warner Avenue Baptist Church, Huntington Beach, CA
wesage –
I would like to thank you for your play “Second Chances”! We did the program and we received lots of positive feedback. It was different than the regular nativity, and with a different meaning. I actually translated the script into Spanish being our church is Spanish speaking. It was so worth it! Thank you!
Eloiza Hernandez, Templo Dios de Amor, Ligonier, IN