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The pageant, which will take place Saturday, Dec. 13, at 6 p.m., will be held at Pinkney Park, 177 Rowayton Ave. It is moving from its longtime home on the grounds of Rowayton School due to ongoing construction at the school.
The pageant was originally produced in 1963 in response to the nation’s grief over the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The original organizers, including current producer and longtime resident Putsie Ritchey, envisioned the pageant as a way to sooth the public with a reminder to “Come to the Light.” That phrase has been used ever since to promote the beloved local event, along with the use of a large searchlight to mark the location.
The pageant, which re-enacts the birth of Jesus and the Three Wise Men’s journey to Bethlehem, includes over 60 local performers, choir members and clergy. It is directed by Laura Czegledi of Rowayton, and sponsored by the Rowayton Civic Association.
The unsung heroes of the Rowayton Nativity Pageant are a group of dedicated locals who come out year after year to rig up the necessary outdoor lighting, sound and staging equipment needed for the event.
There is no parking in Pinkney Park during the pageant, and very limited street parking. Attendants should plan to use the Old School lot on the corner of Witch Lane and Rowayton Avenue, or the Ambler Lot, behind the Rowayton Post Office building and accessed from Wilson Avenue or Rowayton Avenue.
Drivers are asked to slow down in town, as actors and musicians will be crossing Rowayton Avenue from the Rowayton Methodist Church, which is across the street from the park.
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