The church play cinematic universe (preview)
This one will probably be about an hour when it's done, but this felt like a good stopping point for a preview!
Comments (126)
Lmfao holy shit what you said about jack sparrow sounding like a mediocre robin Williams impression had me in TEARS 😭
the silent struggling in each crucifixion scene is killing me
The whiplash I felt with that final cut… I was so convinced that he wasn’t gonna go for it because of that hangtime - the music continuing to play, no “whoa” in sight… I thought to myself, “oh, of course, that note is way too high! No one in their right mind would attempt that when they have his singing range!” And then, at the complete last minute… a single, pained “wuAUGHHH”. Beautiful. That cut truly made my night, thank you 😂
that song is actually about captain jack, which is probably why they used it
Haha, love this concept! I assume the Elizabeth knockoff in the Pirates play was a reference to Mary Magdalene, who is often portrayed as having been a prostitute prior to joining up with the Jesus crew. Thus the weird sassiness and references to trying “everything” to fill the emptiness in her soul or whatever.
Yeah I’m Canadian and I’ve never heard of that song from the pirates one. I do appreciate the weird irony of these lavish spectacles to honour Christ tho. Just the way he said to do it, right? Right?
“Bonus points for pyrotechnics when Christ rises from the dumpster” I laughed so hard I had to pause the video!
Back in high school when i was in my catholic youth group every year each small group would be given a different bible story to make a skit about. One year my group got a story about not judging others. Tbh idr the story but my vision i enforced on the group is someone passes judgement and the JCPD jumps out and we sang a rendition of Stop in the Name of God Before You Judge Someone. I am still proud of it and just wish I had filmed it. I am now an atheist but if my former church wanted to put on one of these i would be first in line. (Also i think the priest is evil bc evangelicals tend to not like Catholics. The feeling is mutual)
Ohmygod. The cringe.....we have a "church on the rock" in the next town. It's this very modern looking building set way back on the lot surrounded by flat grass and farms on 3 sides like something out of Stephen King or a Talking Heads video.
......WEAAOHH!!!!
LMAO DDR flashbacks, Captain Jack is a EDM fever dream
THE RASPUTIN PARODY?!?!??!?
Does anyone else think that the woman who played the pirate Mary (she was also in the Robin of the Hood show) looks like Angie Harmon?
I'll give this church credit where credit is due. As dumb as the plays can be, they clearly put A LOT of work into building the sets, the costumes, and the overall production.
What a note to leave that on
Could not have been a *better* stopping point
I have watched the preview vid like 6 times now, idk what I am going to do if the whole thing doesn't get finished. It's such a perfect idea for a video
I wish I saw this earlier in the year Jenny we did a Mamma Mia themed Purim spiel in March and it slapped
I never knew about these plays before, but now I am dying to learn more. The fact that they crucify characters from popular franchises is amazing.
I grew up super super religious and I’ve been a fan of this channel for a while, and this is one of the greatest vids I’ve seen Jenny. Thank you so much😂
No exaggeration, I really can't remember the last time I had such a strong, full-body physical cringe reaction as I did when Ace Ventura came out and did the alrighty then line. I had to pause and look away for a good 20 seconds haha
Perfectly cut screams
Oh my god, I love this
Perhaps I am more computer illiterate than I thought. How could I find these plays online? I'd love to watch the Avengers one, the ending's Chumbawamba/REM medley connects with me spiritually.
This is very important. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
…none of these people can sing. This is the most confusing part for me.
I like that she cut off the preview on such a badly sung note.
I had a very extensive dream about you uploading the rest of this and I got very excited and woke up lmao
I love your Easter Hat. And Aragog’s.
i can’t wait for this honestly, truly. just UNHINGED
I just want to know… in the “Kung Fu Fighting” song, did they change the lyrics to something like “everybody was worship praising” or did they use the actual lyrics? Are they saying this guy‘s home planet worships Jesus by recounting a time when everyone was kung fu fighting??
They're SWEDING
I’m walking on sunshine…. WAaaahOoOOo!
13:30 was hilarious in how that's just such an insanely compounded reference and I love the way you said "Oh my god." Also, that final cut was beautiful.
Perfect end cut
I RECOGNIZE THE CAPTAIN JACK SONG. It is called "Captain Jack" by the group "Captain Jack" and it's actually really amazing, though I'm biased because my friends and I listened to it in middle school because we were just getting more access to the internet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bb_w7nOBwg&ab_channel=CaptainJackOfficial
I took a picture of my cat and saw my espaliered pear tree in the background and instinctively sighed, expecting it to start singing some 90s pop song I haven't thought about in years.
The Captain Jack song they used was from DanceDance Revolution
One thing I noticed about evangelicals and most other super religious people is they love terrible comedy, drama, and acting. Low production value is another plus. And I don't mean in an ironic way. The absolute garbage that is most christian movies is lost on the core audience.
I don't know if you're a fan of the podcast God Awful Movies, but that's where I learned what you say is true. I'm SHOCKED at how shite a movie can be while still getting a Christian audience as long as it's preaching to the choir.
Perfect place to cut. XD
Absolutely hilarious, excited for the full video :)
Ohhhh my god the place this video cuts I am CRYING
This was a great way to end the preview. I want more.
I'm very excited for this. I love that the previous cuts on that melodic WHOA, leaving is thirsty for more
As a devout Christian who stopped going to church in my early teens, I have heard some upsetting things come out of the mouths of pastors on meticulously lit stages, but hearing actual quotes from the gospels out of the mouth of cosplay Jack Sparrow is a new kind of wild.
I had no idea this was in the pipeline lol I guess I haven't been paying enough attention. Lol, love all the strange topics you bring to my attention, Jenny!
this sparked SO much joy, I can't wait for the full thing
A delight, and I'm excited to see the full thing. good goin jenny!
I’m loving this, but can someone just reassure me that there won’t be some kind of violently awful reaction to this video by either Christian or anti-Christian social media? I know it’s meant in good fun and isn’t mean-spirited, but the Internet is not always the most tactful (see also: the aftermath of Trapped in a Island with Josh Hutcherson (people went to the author’s page and were less than kind to her)).
As someone who was raised in an evangelical megachurch, nah. They know they're being extra with these plays and that's precisely why they do it. To those who identify with this brand of Christianity, Jenny's only lightheartedly poking fun at the things they already know & intentionally created. Those who take issue with this video will also take issue with the subject matter itself -- to conservative Christians, this church is mocking Jesus/the resurrection story and would be the main target of ire.
My cringe is cringing, well done :)
Yes I’m so excited, as soon as I saw your tweets I went digging for more clips of these church plays. It reminds me of when I was little and my sister’s ballet class would put on a production of the nutcracker every year, except the nutcracker was Jesus and the mouse king was the devil. I’ve got to find that video tape somewhere
That type of dancing she's doing with the swords is called Highland Dancing, and come (mostly) from Scotland. The dance she is doing is called the Sword dance, where the whole challenge of the dance is to not kick the sword while dancing in it. Highland dance is much more popular in Canada than the US. I danced competitively for 7 years as a kid and I'm thrilled it was finally vaguely useful for something. It is definitely the way nerdier than Irish Step Dancing. I can't tell you how jealous we were of them with their cute dresses and bouncy curly wigs. (I was also unfortunately a church kid at a super conservative church and definitely preformed there for plays so this video is basically the equivalent of war flashbacks for me)
I went to the comments section to say it was Highland Dancing but I didn't know much else nor anything about the sword dance. (I did Scottish Country Dancing instead :P)
“I’m walking on sunshine xx”
Jenny, thank you for the ending of this preview. Because not only is Princess Bride my favorite movie, but that ending scream put literally tears in my eyes. You are the best. 🥲
Jenny, you are a total wildcard. You've got so many videos in the pipeline. The Barbie video, Evermore, The Star Wars hotel, Star Wars Land parts 2&3. All very On-Brand. And what is your next project? Whatever this is! And please note, this is NOT a criticism! This is exactly what I love about you as a Youtuber. From no one else can I get this kind of content. This is now the video I look forward to most. Please continue to surprise.
Everyone is talking about how this video ends, but I'm just as big of a fan of how it opens. "So my recent fascination has been obscure Canadian church plays."
Perfect stopping point, no notes
Amazing. CANNOT wait for the final video.
I didn't know what was meant by "church play" but oh my god this is 100000% better than anything I could've imagined
I'm walking on sunshine ~~~ WuAAW
The editing is 👌🏻
This is delightful, can’t wait for the final version!
Wow, love this. Reminds me of the church I went to as a kid and they had a weekly performance for the kids called Treasure Cove with a crazy set. There was like character arcs that followed week by week, like it was a continuous storyline of these characters. I think there was like a pirate, like a naval captain, a hippie lady, a workman. There was a theme song and like it was a whole thing. They still do it weekly! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldRJlYTG1OY
Also after reviewing this video I feel like the set was more elaborate in 2004 when I went to church, but also might just be because I was a kid lol
this is content i didn't even know existed, but now i crave more, thanks jenny <3 gimme all the post-crucifiction laments!!
Wow you made my day. It's actually Scottish step dancing. They got hands! Irish step dancing those hands never move above the waste :D
Jesus rising out of the dumpster with pyrotechnics. . . . You can't make this stuff up.
"There is an emptiness in my soul that I've not been able to fill and trust me I've tried everything." The way she delivered it sounded like she was trying to do a "That's what she said" joke.
Oh my god. These are amazing.
this was exactly what my morning needed! I'm even more excited for the full version now :)
lol that captain jack song with the awful army beat is, i kid u not, called Captain Jack by artist Captain Jack. Someone who produced this was definitely addicted to DDR at the time
The cut at the end ❤️🤣
The SCREAM this ended on this is exactly what I needed to wake up to this morning Jenny thank you
This is my absolute favorite kind of Jenny content.
Thankfully I’m at Disney World this week so there is no shortage of busses to throw myself in front of to purge this all from my memory
The way you cut the end of this video is KILLING me
I never would have guessed that I would be excited to spend an hour engaging with "church plays" but here we are. Can't wait for the full version!
These previews always cut off (literally, this time lol!) just when you're getting caught up in them, aaargh! It's kind of morbidly fascinating seeing jolly song and dance productions end with a crucifixion. I mean, I know they're easter themed and all but 'tis really a strange world. Thanks for all the videos of late Jenny!
"I'm walking on sunshine...........WAUGH"
They didn't insert Captain Jack into that song btw, as far as I'm aware those are the actual lyrics lol I only know the song because of Dance Dance Revolution
Knowing how cliquey and full of nepotism community theater tends to be, I wonder if there's similar drama behind the scenes of these. Like clearly there has to at least one disgruntled choir member who auditioned for a lead only to have the role be given to someone like our friend at the end there who sounds like he's very slowly and painfully turning into a velociraptor, but is also buddy-buddy with the pastor (or more cynically, perhaps gives more money to the church).
Church showbiz lends itself to every vice found in regular showbiz.
I adore this but the horrific level of cringe I have for the memories of the fact my chruch did similar stuff and I was always involved may actually be deadly. I have horror stories
Oh man I can't wait for the rest. This will surely push you past a million subs better make room for your tree!!
Also how many youtube comments will be "lol Jenny's channel has risen from the dead!"? All they have to do is join her patreon 🤷♂️
That's a perfect cut to end on; I die laughing every time at his "joyful" screech! The story, singing, and dialogue are always somewhere in the realm of bizarre on these, but those sets are undeniably magnificent!
I think it's extra hilarious that his screech is several beats too late, like he had to hype himself up to get it out.
Oh Jenny... This is going to be incredible.
After watching the video I'm shocked my childhood church didn't do something like this. Great find and awesome video; I can't wait for the whole thing!
I was absolutely speechless watching these. Can't wait for the full video! I kept sending the Twitter clips to my fiance to his utter bewilderment; can't wait to tell him he will have context soon. Also, thank you so much for all the recent Patreon content!
i was showing the twitter clips to like everyone i knew so im glad jenny’s making a full video on this topic (although they were SO GOOD out of context)
"When Christ rises out of the dumpster" really got me.
Pain! Pain! And I am here for it
I had NO idea what we were getting into with this video, I really thought it was some video game thing and was like "am I this out of touch?" And it's even more out there than I thought?
One last comment, sorry, but I am eager to see the breakdown of the Back to the Future one. That clip torments me. Who is the guy getting crucified on the clock tower even supposed to BE? He doesn't look like Marty but Doc's in the DeLorean for some reason... I have so many questions.
Ohhh boy, can't wait to crawl out of my skin with secondhand shame 😄
I live for this. Everything is a cinematic universe if you know how to look.
Wait, what, they gave Barbosa's "What'll it be, Jack" speech to Davy Jones but still put Barbosa in it? What's even happening here. Canadian here, Michael Jackson is as "hood" as Winnipeg is capable of getting. I do not have an explanation for doing Ace Ventura impressions 16 years too late. Please do not judge my country for that. This video looks to be super fun. Very much looking forward to the full version.
OMG! I can't wait to watch the whole review!
My friends are going to this hyper-realistic easter story play soon that all the people of one village prepare for for 10 years as thanks for saving them from the plague 400 years ago but I’m just sad I can never irl witness a racially charged Robin Hood adaptation with a weird Al reference that features Jesus resurrecting from a dumpster😔
A couple of nights ago I had a dream this video had dropped. I awoke knowing my subconscious couldn't come up with anything as good as the real video would be. I was correct. My subconscious didn't think of giving Aragog a fun Easter bonnet and umbrella. Dang but picking a song about a sex-crazed magic monk to make about Jesus was a choice. A better choice than having Sulu do Kung Fu Fighting (OOF) but a weird choice just the same.
Giving Sulu "Kung-Fu Fighting" is one of those weird moments where I have to say "You aren't even doing your racism right!" Though I guess the idea of not being able to distinguish Chinese and Japanese people is potentially more racist...
This is amazing! I can’t wait for the rest.
This preview had me crying laughing. Can't wait for the full video. The fucking ace Ventura guy. Do you think you can hire him for parties
The end of this preview is so wonderful. Thank you 🥹
This is already my new favorite jenny video ever and it’s not even out yet
Mind Blown! This is incredible. I can't wait to see the full version.
I’m surprised they didn’t make Spock Jesus in the Star Trek play with Khan
Look, you're right and you should say it, but... I've only seen this preview and the clips Jenny tweeted but I'm-a go out on a limb here and say they might not care too much about canon.
so good - you never cease to amaze with your pop culture explorations
love the fact that all of starfleet is present for the entirety of the star trek one.
jenny i see you with the custom squishmallow👁👁 SHOW US MORE (please)
That cut!!! Hahaha Jesus
that cut point is chef's kiss
Oh boy, Captain Jack is the actual name of the song lol It's a 90s eurodance song from Germany, DDR players would be familiar with this song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bb_w7nOBwg
That's a pretty dramatic twist for me
👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒👒
These made me cry when you posted the clips in your Twitter. Why must we suffer
No way you stopped it there….
if i was a big ol spider all i’d want to do is go see church plays 🎭 especially if it gives me an excuse to wear my big ol fancy hat 👒
This is the perfect birthday present thank you Jenny ❤️
Happy birthday!
Yay!! I love your content so much !! It’s always such a treat !!