Ministry performers bring Bible figures, saint to life

St. Lawrence parishioner Sandra Hartlieb of Indianapolis portrays St. Theodora Guérin in an original play that she wrote for Sisterhood Christian Drama Ministry called “In Her Own Words.” She presented the play with her sister, Nora Pritchett of Sellersburg, for the Sisters of Providence at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods in July and St. Jude School students in Indianapolis in October. Their husbands, Ron Hartlieb and Alan Pritchett, as well as their brother, Bob Braden, and sisters, Peggy Young and Bibiana Richardson, are part of their family’s dramatic theater ministry. Sisterhood Christian Drama Ministry presents a variety of dramatizations about women and men in the Bible. Sisterhood is a non-profit organization, and family members rely on grants, sponsorships and free-will donations to cover production costs.

By Mary Ann Wyand

It’s fascinating to watch St. Lawrence parishioner Sandra Hartlieb of Indianapolis slip into character as St. Theodora Guérin or one of the women mentioned in the Bible.

As her voice changes, her facial ­expressions seem to effortlessly transform as well to complement her historical ­costumes.

Hartlieb depicts the French-born saint who founded the Sisters of Providence at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods with skill and confidence based on countless hours of research and rehearsals.

She demonstrates those same theatrical qualities when she portrays the Samaritan woman who meets Jesus at the well.

Ten years ago, Hartlieb and her family founded Sisterhood Christian Drama Ministry to bring Scripture stories alive on the stage.

She is the only member of her talented acting family with professional theatrical training—a bachelor’s degree in theater earned at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis.

Catholics in central and southern Indiana can see Sisterhood perform Scripture ­stories at 7 p.m. on Nov. 9 at St. Lawrence Church, 6944 E. 46th St., in Indianapolis. The ­performance is free. Donations are appreciated to offset expenses.

Hartlieb is excited about performing a variety of Bible stories at her home parish with her sisters and brother—Nora Pritchett of Sellersburg, Peggy Young of Louisville and Bob Braden of Louisville. Another ­sister, Bibiana Richardson of Lillington, N.C., helps write the scripts long distance.

Pritchett, who is Methodist, said she ­suffers from stage fright, but God gives her the strength and courage to perform and dance before large groups of people.

“I always ask God for help,” Pritchett said, “and once I’m on stage it’s there for me. This is a responsibility. … God has blessed us with these talents as a family. I believe that if you are not standing on the edge of your comfort zone, you are not doing what God wants you to do. You have to step over the line.”

Last year, Hartlieb developed a one-hour play about St. Theodora, which she says is near and dear to her heart.

“As a woman of faith, as a Catholic woman,” Hartlieb said, “the line [in the play] that touches me is when she talks about what it means to be holy. Her sisters ask her, ‘What does it mean to be a saint?’ And she says, ‘Nothing extraordinary. Just do what you do every day, only do it for his love.’

“That’s what fills me, I think, when I’m on stage doing a [portrayal of a] woman from the Bible or doing Mother Theodore,” she said. “That I get this opportunity to do this for his love. And because he loves me, I get to express his love to other people by telling a [Christian] story.”

Sisterhood began when the sisters took a break from their travels at a rest stop along I-65 in southern Indiana in 1995.

They believe that God called them then—in the midst of a journey—to share Scripture with others through the theatrical talents that he gave them.

“He did call me to this ministry,” Hartlieb said. “We talk about the Holy Spirit giving us a nudge every once in a while or a real big shove a lot of times. I think with my Mother Theodore play the Holy Spirit did give me a real big shove, and I think Mother Theodore was right there … shoving me as well.”

Hartlieb said she believes “Catholic women, Christian women, need to hear [St. Theodora’s] story, not because of all the [difficult] things that she went through, but because her faith persevered and carried her through all those difficulties. It’s the end that counts.

“The journey through all these ­adversities tests you and forges you,” she explained. “But how do you come out on the other side? How do you ­present ­yourself to other people? How do you keep on keeping on? She was able to do that, and support her sisters and encourage them. Some of her letters written to individual sisters were so ­supportive. She knew every sister so well, and told her sisters, ‘I know you’re thinking this. I know you’re doing this. But I need you to focus on what Jesus wants you to do.’ ”

Because of St. Theodora’s poor health and other challenges she faced in the dense woods of west-central Indiana, Hartlieb said, the nun placed her trust in God’s ­loving Providence, leaned on him with all her faith and was able to accomplish so many ministries with her sisters.

“She looked around when she got there,” Hartlieb explained, “and she said, ‘How could this place be chosen? This solitude? How could this be chosen for a novitiate and for a school? All appearances are against it.’ ”

Smiling, Hartlieb said, “You know the rest of the story.”

And that’s why she enjoys sharing St. Theodora’s life story on stage.

(For more information about Sisterhood Christian Drama Ministry, their St. Theodora Guérin play and their Nov. 9 presentation at St. Lawrence Parish in Indianapolis, log on to their Web site at www.sisterhoodfour.org.) †