m a s t e r a r t s . o r g

A NIGHT OF MIME & MORE

Tickets are now available for A Night of Mime & More, starring Dawn Day.  Dawn and her daughter Dionna have been doing mime as one of our traveling troupes for several years, and now they are bringing past mime participants back for a powerful evening of mime, dance, juggling and clowning around.  You won't want to miss this show!

Special Guests: Ben & Christine Christiansen

All tickets are only $10, and there are only 3 performances: Friday, October 7 at 7:30 pm and Saturday, October 8 at 2:00 and 7:30 pm.

You can order your seats by contacting the box office at (616) 455-1001, or click on the button above. 

A Night of Mime & More is sponsored by: 

STAGE WHISPERS

Dawn Day

I met Pris in 1990 when she made a trip down to the Chicago area to meet with my father, Joseph DeVelasco. My dad was the illustrator for the Calvin Miller book, The Singer. Master Arts was going to perform the play at Grace Bible College, now Grace Christian University, and she wanted my dad to illustrate the backdrops for the play. I was introduced to Pris and when we moved to the Grand Rapids area, I joined Master Arts as a Street Theatre member and also several plays. But it was Pris who encouraged me to concentrate on the art of mime. After struggling with that thought a bit, I took her wise advise and received more training from Mimeistry International. God used that training for Master Arts and in 1996 started training our youths at church the art of mime to minister in Costa Rica.Silent Light was born that year and since then there has been several versions of the team but the mission was always the same. Ministering to people using the art of mime. The team went to outreach services for many churches, drug rehab centers and juvenile centers. I had the opportunity to go to the state prisons with an evangelist named Billy Schneider and the team did many Billy Rallies for schools in the evening performing for the kids, Billy would give his testimony and lead kids to Christ and then we would all meet and pray with those kids. All that started because of the encouragement Pris gave me along the way. This is the first full performance I have done without her wise direction  and encouragement.

We miss you Pris and we love you. See you in Eternity.

Ben Christensen

Ben has been performing and entertaining audiences around the world from the ripe age of 4. He heard God's call into Children's Evangelism while at a church summer camp when he was 8 and promptly began honing his skills as a juggler, clown, mime, and all around funny guy; because he knew, even then, that it was easier to teach kids if they were interested. After graduating high school, Ben attended North Central University where he studied and graduated with a degree in Children's Ministry. He has traveled, performed and ministered as a solo artist, in the company of PUSH Physical Theatre, with Circus World Museum's Circus, as a duo act with his wife Christine and with various performing artists and pastors from around the globe. Ben's love for clowning landed him the title of Master Clown with the World Clown Association in 2013 and he continues to use the skills he honed as a young boy in his most recent endeavor as the Children's Pastor of Connection Church in Canton, MI. He continues to bring the love of God, joy and laughter to audiences of every age.

Christine Christensen

Christine discovered her love for the performing arts at age 11 when she took an acting class. Even though she was a shy young girl she quickly found herself enjoying drama, dance and mime at Master Arts Day Camp. Mime was a special favorite and she applied herself to develop the skill, she learned most of what she knows now thanks to the training and kind leadership of Dawn Day. Christine became a member of the Silent Light mime team and experienced the joy of sharing the Gospel through the art of mime with people from many demographics. She has been able to travel the world, telling people about Christ without saying a word! After Christine graduated high school she was planning to attend Mimeistry College in CA but those plans were interrupted by an accident involving a horse and a tree. She took time to heal and regain strength and after a year of chronic pain was finally able to step into the movement arts world again. She moved to Rochester, NY and joined the company of PUSH Physical Theatre where she spent 3 years training and performing. At the start of her third year on the company a "new guy" joined the team...his name was Ben and thus started a close friendship that quickly blossomed. Ben & Christine were married in 2012. They flew from their honeymoon straight to MN to perform for a circus at Sonshine Music Festival and their travelling ministry adventures began. Christine spent 3 years ministering alongside Ben and when their first daughter was born she quickly filled the role of "mommy on the road" and less of that of a performer. She now thoroughly enjoys being a stay at home/homeschooling mom to 3 beautiful girls. Christine still loves to share her passion for the art of mime when the opportunity arises.

Dionna Gustafson

Dionna Gustafson has enjoyed mime in some capacity for most of her life.  Being one of Dawn Day's children, she grew up around mime and showed interest in the art at an early age. At 11 years old she joined her Mom's mime ministry team, Silent Light, and learned so much in her time on that team.  In 2004 she joined a school named Mimeistry for three years. Mimeisty was a college in Pasadena  California dedicated to the study Mime, theology and ministry.  Since graduating from Mimeistry she has spent several summers as a mime teacher for Master Arts Day Camps and has done various other mime related activities.

Melissa Hawkins

Melissa Hawkins started out as an original member of the Silent Light Mime Team directed by Dawn Day. While it all began as a short term ministry opportunity to bless the people of Costa Rica during a missions trip, it turned into a 10+ year ministry for Melissa and many other team members. Being part of this team throughout the critical years of high school and much of college, Melissa fully believes God used Silent Light to help deepen her faith and relationship with Jesus Christ, and give her a passion for ministry!

Since moving on from Silent Light, Melissa became an RN, got married to her husband Jason, and now has 3 children. Apart from being a full-time mom and a part-time nurse, she enjoys camping, cheering on her children in their various sports activities, ministering at Rush Creek Bible church in different ways, and of course being available to come back and do a mime piece with Dawn as the rare occasion arises!

Crystal York

Crystal York has grown up with Master Arts since childhood because she is the daughter Dawn Day. Crystal had attended Street Theater rehearsals and performances always volunteering to be part of the Street Theater stories along with her siblings Dionna and Sean. She joined Silent Light in high school and continued with the mime team until she graduated from Grace Bible College.

She is married to Adam York and has 4 boys. Crystal has a full time job as a home school mom, cake baker and decorator and is still an excellent performer. It has been fun to have some of the team back to perform again.