Since 1937, the outdoor summer production of The Hill Cumorah Pageant: America’s Witness for Christ has been held on the hillside next to the Hill Cumorah Visitors’ Center in Manchester, New York. But on Friday, July 9, 2021, the Hill Cumorah Pageant took its final curtain call—virtually.
The event consisted of a commemorative devotional with keynote speaker Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and a broadcast of the 2019 production of the pageant.
“I express profound thanks to each and all of the thousands who over the years, since 1937, have had any role in or made any contribution to the Hill Cumorah Pageant,” Elder Christofferson said.
Elder Christofferson also quoted President Marion G. Romney’s statement that the pageant has been a tool to share “that the heavens have been opened anew, that God has spoken again, that Christ still lives and has revealed himself in this dispensation as He did in dispensations past.”
Other devotional speakers included former artistic directors, cast, and crew members from throughout the years.
“I'll never forget the love I felt as the rehearsals proceeded and I saw my husband and each of our children at different places on the stage with their eyes fixed on the actor playing the Savior,” said former pageant staff member, Jennifer Buckner. “Night after night, this image sunk deep into my heart, and has become a pattern for our family to follow.”
The devotional and pageant broadcast are both available to watch on broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org in English (English descriptive audio is available for the pageant only), Spanish, Portuguese and ASL for two weeks. After those two weeks, the Hill Cumorah Pageant will be available to watch in Gospel Media, but the devotional will no longer be available.
Read the full article on Newsroom.