Christian theater productions are smash hit at Museum of the Bible
Logos Theatre, a Christian organization based in South Carolina, is taking its show on the road. The troupe’s plays have featured adaptations of C.S. Lewis’s “The Horse and His Boy” and “Prince Caspian,” as well as an adaptation of John Bunyan’s Christian classic, “The Pilgrim’s Progress.” Recent performance venues include the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C,, and the Ark Encounter in Kentucky.
Logos has “absolutely flown under the radar,” Garrett Hinton, director of revenue at the Museum of the Bible, told the “Washington Post.”
The museum has booked Logos for two more shows in 2025, including a yet-to-be-named adaptation of a C.S. Lewis novel. As Washington prepares for the return of President-elect Donald Trump, the museum says its successful partnership with Logos demonstrates that there is a growing audience in the nation’s capital for Christian, and decidedly culturally conservative, entertainment. For Logos, that commitment extends beyond subject matter: The company requires its artists to affirm a 14-point doctrinal statement, including a policy that prohibits those who identify as LGBTQ.
Logos Theatre’s performances at the museum, which began last year, have not only increased museum attendance but also amplified touring demand for a company that had been virtually unknown outside of its region until recently. In one year of traveling to Washington, the organization’s program services revenue (essentially, its ticket sales), grew from $1.6 million in 2022 to $2.6 million in 2023, according to public tax records for the Academy of Arts, the unaccredited Christian arts conservatory that oversees Logos Theatre.
When it comes to Christian theater, America’s most popular brand is Sight & Sound, which is currently mounting 11 performances of the original musical “Daniel” each week at its 2,000-seat theater in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and recently closed its 10-show-a-week run of “Queen Esther” at its satellite venue in Branson. David comes to Branson in 2025. Liberal Washington and its suburbs might seem like a tough fit for a company with a stated mission to “Bring the Bible to Life.” Some Logos Theatre audiences are tourists who plan trips around the play, but Hinton said the majority of patrons have been local.
“To me, the D.C. area is a mini-Bible Belt in and of itself,” he said.
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice
