Cast Testimonies Continued:
In the beginning, going to play practice was hard because I had to give up a lot of my free time and time I could have spent sleeping in or hanging out with my friends. But when the play came near to the end, and I could watch all the scenes other than the one I was in, I started to really appreciate it. Before this play, I felt like I never really knew Joseph Smith as well as I thought I did. Before each practice our director would give a devotional that always brought the spirit in. Through this play, my testimony has been strengthened because I feel like now I know Joseph Smith, and the person he really was. My testimony was also strengthened because of the people I was constantly around. They were huge examples to me and they always had a special spirit. I am grateful for this play and grateful to be a part of it. The only reason I wish I wasn’t in this play now is that I wish I could have seen it all as everyone in the audience did. There was always a strong spirit there and no matter what mood I was in, I could feel it. I love Joseph Smith and I am so grateful for what he went through for us. He is an amazing man and seeing a part of what he went through for us, makes me appreciate him more than I did before. I love the gospel and the experiences that we have to strengthen our testimonies.
- Kayla M. (Young Mercy Rachel Thompson)
My involvement in this play has enabled me to visualize Joseph Smith as a real, true personage, not just a perhaps somewhat mythological character that claimed to have seen the living God, the Father and His Son. It also helped me to appreciate his human compassion and the love he shared with all those he knew - not just his friends but also other people, including even his enemies. It perhaps did for me with respect to Joseph Smith, what the First Vision did for Joseph Smith with respect to God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. It made me appreciate Joseph Smith more as a true and actual personage.
- Roy D. (William Cahoon, Martin Harris, Brother Whitney)