Church Skits & Plays
A Good Friday readers’ theaterThe Veil6 actors · 6–7 min

Easter · 6 actors · 6–7 minutes · Adults or older teens

The Veil

On the Friday Jesus was crucified, a priest on duty in the temple keeps every fold of the veil hanging straight, until at the ninth hour it tears in front of him, from the top. A Good Friday readers’ theater for six, with a real sheet torn on stage.

$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 time6–7 minutes
Cast6 roles · Adults or older teens
PrepRead from scripts on music stands, with one rehearsal of about 40 minutes, including practice tears. You’ll need an old bedsheet for every performance, because it’s torn for real.
Best forGood Friday service, Tenebrae, a Holy Week evening service, before a sermon on Hebrews 10:19–22 or on the torn veil
ScriptureHebrews 9:6–8; Matthew 27:45–46, 50–51; Hebrews 10:19–20 (KJV)
ThemeWhen Jesus died, God tore the temple veil from the top to the bottom. By His blood the way into the holiest is open: “a new and living way… through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.”
FormatPrintable PDF

About the skit

The priest on duty shows you the holy place: the lampstand, the table with the bread, the altar of incense, and the veil. “Divide. That’s its work.” While he smooths its folds, the older priest wants everything finished before the sabbath, and the younger one has been outside, where the sun has gone dark at noon.

He doesn’t want to hear about the man led out to the hill that morning, though years ago he heard Him say something about destroying this temple, and laughed. At the ninth hour he stands alone at the veil and lifts his hands as he would at the incense, while the Narrator reads Matthew 27. All six close with Hebrews 10:19–20.

No humor: it’s written for Good Friday or Tenebrae, and the torn veil stays up for the rest of the service. Six readers at music stands and one 40-minute rehearsal. The staging notes cover which sheets tear, hanging one safely, how the two Readers tear it from behind and the top, and a fallback.

Read the first page

(All six walk in. The PRIEST ON DUTY goes to the veil first and straightens one fold before he goes to his stand. They open their folders together.)

FIRST READER: "Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God."

SECOND READER: "But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:"

FIRST READER: "The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest..."

NARRATOR: Jerusalem, during the feast. A Friday, the day before the sabbath. In the temple, a priest is serving his turn.

THE PRIEST ON DUTY: (to the congregation, the way you'd show a guest around) This is the holy place. The lampstand. The table with the bread. The altar of incense. (He turns toward the veil.) And this is the veil. (beat) The Law says, "Thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made." Cherubims. Like the ones God set east of Eden when Adam was driven out, to guard the way back in. (beat) "And the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy."

THE PRIEST ON DUTY: Divide. That's its work. On the other side is the most holy place. Nobody goes in there. One man, the high priest, once a year, on the day of atonement, and not without blood. (He steps to the veil and smooths a fold.) My work is on this side. The lamps. The incense at the hour of prayer. And this: every fold hanging straight.

THE OLDER PRIEST: You're still at that?

THE PRIEST ON DUTY: It wasn't straight.

THE OLDER PRIEST: It's been straight since morning. The sabbath starts at sunset, and this one is a high day. The courts are full of people for the feast. Finish your turn and let's be done.

THE PRIEST ON DUTY: My turn is done at the ninth hour, when the incense is burned. Not before.

THE YOUNGER PRIEST: (urgently, low) Have you been outside?

The script continues in the full PDF.

Characters

  • Narrator, reads the Gospel; steady and plain
  • The Priest on Duty, serving his turn in the temple; careful, exact and quietly proud of doing things right
  • The Older Priest, practical; the sabbath begins at sunset and he wants everything finished
  • The Younger Priest, uneasy; he has been outside and seen the dark
  • First Reader, reads from Hebrews; one of the two pairs of hands that tear the veil from behind
  • Second Reader, reads from Hebrews; the other pair of hands on the tear

Props

  • An old cotton bedsheet for the veil, with a short cut at the top
  • A curtain rod, pipe or rope to hang it about 6½ feet up
  • Large safety pins
  • Two old sheets for rehearsal, and one more for each performance
  • Six music stands with plain black folders

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.

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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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