Church Skits & Plays
A Christmas skitReserved3–4 actors · 5 min

Christmas · 3–4 actors · 5 minutes · Adults (one part can be a teen)

Reserved

Christmas Eve, ten-thirty, a small-town diner about to close. The waitress has set one long table for six, and a card in the middle says Reserved. A quiet, warm skit for a candlelight or Blue Christmas service.

$8USD, tax included
  • Instant PDF download, yours to keep
  • Performance rights for your whole church
  • 30-day refund if it doesn’t fit your church
Running time5 minutes
Cast3–4 roles · Adults (one part can be a teen)
PrepOne rehearsal, or two if the pauses need work. Walt reads Luke 2:7 from the card.
Best forChristmas Eve service, candlelight service, Blue Christmas or Longest Night service
ScriptureLuke 2:7 (KJV)
ThemeJesus was born where there was no room, and His invitation is open to everyone, even those who have stopped expecting one.
FormatPrintable PDF

About the skit

Walt only wanted a coffee to go. Dana only wanted pie. Kevin only wanted somewhere warm with Wi-Fi. Each of them walks in expecting to hear “We’re closing,” and each time June says the same thing: “Your table’s ready.”

Nobody reserved anything, so who is the long table for? The answer is written on the back of the card, and it brings Luke 2:7 into a diner on Christmas Eve. The humor is gentle, the pauses do the work, and nobody needs to cry on stage.

Three or four adults and a simple set. It plays in about five minutes, and the staging notes show how to run it without Kevin and how to be thoughtful with people who are grieving this Christmas.

Read the first page

(Lights up, warm and low. JUNE moves along the long table, setting out the last cups and humming "Silent Night." The RESERVED card stands in the middle of the table. She finishes, crosses to the door, and reaches for the sign to flip it to CLOSED. The bells jingle. WALT steps in, hat in hand, snow on his shoulders. He stops just inside the door.)

WALT: Oh. You're closing.

JUNE: Not yet.

WALT: I'll just get a coffee to go. I know it's late. I didn't call or anything.

JUNE: Your table's ready.

WALT: My... what table?

JUNE: (pulling out the center chair at the long table) Right here.

WALT: (looking at the card) This says reserved.

JUNE: It is.

WALT: Not for me, it isn't.

JUNE: Sit down, Walt. The coffee's fresh.

(WALT hesitates, then sits, still holding his hat.)

WALT: You remember my name.

JUNE: Black coffee, no sugar, Tuesdays and Fridays. You and Margaret, in the booth by the pie case.

WALT: (a beat) Forty-six years, Margaret did Christmas Eve. Ham. Scalloped potatoes. Her sister's green bean thing.

JUNE: I remember the green bean thing.

The script continues in the full PDF.

Characters

  • June, a waitress who knows every regular’s name and order
  • Walt, in his seventies, facing his first Christmas Eve without his wife
  • Dana, an ER nurse just off a double shift, with her family in Texas
  • Kevin, optional: a college student who couldn’t afford the flight home

Props

  • Two tables pushed together, set for six
  • A small table set for one
  • A coffee pot and a covered casserole dish
  • A folded RESERVED card
  • A music stand or coat rack as the door, with an OPEN sign and sleigh bells

What you get

  • The full script with stage directions
  • Cast list, props list and simple staging notes
  • Four discussion questions for a small group, youth group or Sunday school class
  • Performance rights for your church: perform it as often as you like and print copies for your cast

Performance rights

One purchase covers one church or ministry. Perform it as many times as you like, make copies for everyone in the cast and crew, adapt the lines and include it in your livestream. Please don’t resell the script or share the file publicly. Read the full license.

More for your Christmas program

Questions

Can I change the names or lines?

Yes. Change names and genders, trim lines for time or adapt a joke for your church. The script is yours to fit to your people.

Can we record and stream the performance?

Yes. You can include it in your livestream and post the recording on your church’s own channels.

How do I get the file after I buy?

Right after checkout you get a download link on the confirmation page and by email. It works for up to 20 downloads, and each copy is marked with your order so it stays licensed to your church.

Who is the seller on my receipt?

Payments are processed by Link, Stripe’s checkout, which acts as the reseller. Your card statement shows LINK.COM* CHURCHSKITS. Questions about the script itself come to us at hello@churchskits.org.

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