By Melissa Heckscher, contributing writer
When Rancho Palos Verdes resident Phil Hodges decided to take part in a “Living Art” show at his church 15 years ago, he didn’t realize he’d be starting a family tradition that would span three generations.
But here he is, at age 83 and ready to once again don several layers of body paint to climb into a massive recreation of DaVinci’s “Last Supper” while his daughter, LeeAnne Pinner, prepares to narrate the show and his 17-year-old grandson, James Pinner, gears up to play Jesus in one of the art pieces.
“This is church at its best,” said Hodges, one of the 41 cast members in the “Living Art Experience” at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center March 23-24.
“To sit in the makeup room and watch your family grow and interrelate with people of all ages in a place where everyone matters — from the littlest, smallest, job to the oldest person — it’s just really special.”
Now in its 38th year, the “Living Art Experience,” formerly called “Pageant of our Lord,” is an art and music spectacle that tells the story of Jesus Christ through live recreations of famous works of art.
The show was modeled after Laguna Beach’s long-running “Pageant of the Masters,” which draws more than a quarter of a million people every year. Both shows rely on volunteers, who are painted to match the stone, bronze, or canvas colors of their particular tableau, then stand so still that audience members can’t tell what’s breathing and what’s not.
“A lot of people don’t realize there are real people in these art pieces,” said Jeannie Halverson, the producer and director of the show. “A lot of people are coming to see the art and to see if they can tell which people are real and which people are sculptures.”
This year’s show features 12 art pieces, including Michelangelo’s “La Pietà,” Claus Sluter’s “The Well of Moses,” and Rosalind Cook’s “Come Unto Me.”
Similar to Pageant of the Masters, the crescendo and final art piece of the show is always Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Last Supper,” which recreates Jesus’ final meal before the crucifixion. The massive canvas — which takes up almost the whole stage — features 13 live actors.
In addition to the art itself, there will also be narration, a vocal ensemble, and a live orchestra to accompany each piece of art.
“Our desire is to present the Gospel in a very creative, artistic way through art and music,” Halverson said. “Hopefully those attending will be inspired to learn more so they can decide for themselves who (Jesus) is”.
Change of scope
Founded by music director David Halverson (Jeannie’s husband) in 1986, the show was originally designed as a way to bring the story of Easter to life. It has been held at the Rolling Hills Covenant Church on the Palos Verdes Peninsula since last year, when church renovations forced a relocation.
Organizers hope the venue and name change will attract people who might have been reluctant to see a show at a church.
“We decided to create a new identity to make it a community event,” Halverson said. “It was originally Pageant of our Lord but that doesn’t really tell you what you’re going to see. This way, people have an idea it has something to do with art.”
It also allows for a bigger audience. Halverson said the show has brought in as many as 10,000 people from all over California.
“When there’s an event at a church people expect a certain thing,” she said. “ We have all faiths come, but you can’t avoid the fact it’s an event based on the Bible.”
A family tradition
Ask him what he does in the show and Hodges will stand up and show you. After all, it’s the makeup, lighting and music that do most of the work. His part is simple:
“I’ll show you my complete presentation,” he said, doing a quick standstill in his Rancho Palos Verdes living room with one arm up as if he’s about to say something and his head tilted ever so slightly. “I practice it every year.”
Hodges was an elder at the Rolling Hills Covenant Church when he joined the show in 2009. It took a few years to lure his daughter, LeeAnne Pinner, and four grandkids (James, John, and Julia Pinner of Rancho Palos Verdes; and Sarah Hodges of Palos Verdes Estates) to climb into the art as models, too.
Once they did, they were hooked, with the kids only opting out when they went off to college.
“It is just sweet and joyful and special to do it with all of us together,” said LeeAnne Pinner, 49, of Rancho Palos Verdes. “It’s a very special thing to be there with my dad and my kids.”
Pinner said the most emotional year was when she and her son James were chosen as models for “La Pietà,” which depicts the moment a lifeless Jesus is laid into his mother’s arms after the crucifixion.
“Being a mother holding her child — I could put myself in that moment, to have just witnessed your son crucified,” said Pinner, who will be a narrator in this year’s show. “That’s a lot.”
She added: “It’s so much more than a performance. This is a portrayal of the cornerstone at how we live our lives.”
While the sets are readied long before the show (the paintings and sculptures are rotated and reused from previous years), transforming the cast members into works of art for each show takes about two hours, Pinner said.
Makeup artists use layers of paint to cover every visible inch of “living” skin. Models are painted, sprayed, dried, and sometimes painted again.
It’s worth noting that almost nobody is getting paid. Of the more than 150 people in the cast and crew, the only paid positions are a few orchestra members who were hired for instruments Halverson couldn’t find volunteers to play.
It’s a labor of love — and one that much of the cast comes back to year after year.
“It’s like my seasonal family,” said 17-year-old James, who started doing the show when he was 8. “While it’s not a traditional church service, we get to honor our God by doing this. It’s a lot of fun, but there’s always the deeper underlying conviction.”
He added: “It’s just an amazing experience to be part of.”
If you go
Living Art Experience
Where: Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center
When: March 23-24 (Saturday, 1 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m. & 5 p.m. )
Prices: Premium seats $100, Orchestra $50 and Terrace $35.
For more information: tickets.livingartexperience.com.
