Nativities - how are parts chosen?

[SteppedOnTheLego]

As the title suggests - how do kids nativity parts get chosen? When I was a kid, it was always the kindest, best behaved girl in the class who was rewarded with the coveted part of Mary, whereas the part of Joseph went to the most outgoing boy who didn’t mind having several lines but wasn’t necessarily the nicest boy, kids who were studious were narrators, the ones who’s attendance couldn’t be relied upon were carol singers etc……for reference I was cast as a bell ringer 😂
But can any primary teachers shed any light……how do they choose which kid has which part?! What are the requirements for a Mary, a Joseph, one of the Three Kings etc?!

@LuvSmallDogs That reminds me of that marvellous Sainsbury's advert with the plug. Possibly my all time favourite Christmas advert.

Behind the scenes is really cute

And thank goodness most of these aren't in a school nativity!

Ds was a narrator. He wasn't a particularly brilliant reader, but he was (and still is!) loud. I think he was probably chosen because they knew the parents at the back would be able to hear him 😂

I think my dd would be very good in a main role, if only she could get over her performance anxiety. So I'll encourage her but not push her too hard. I suspect she'll prefer to be chorus. In everyday life and conversation she's very confident - just not on stage in front of people.

My mother taught primary for years and none of the boys ever wanted to be Joseph as it meant you had to stand with a girl and not with your mates like the cool kings / shepherds.

Never got a role in a school nativity. Did once play an angel in a Sunday school nativity though.

Non speaking but important parts (eg Mary!) I would always give to a child who I felt needed a 'boost'
Someone recently bereaved, a child in foster care etc

Speaking parts (obviously) go to children who read confidently (and more importantly want the part!)

I've dealt with many parents over the years that are furious about the part their child has been given.
It's awful and I just feel embarrassed for them.

Was the other a donkey called Steve?

And if you've been on here long enough you know it goes something like this, from top job down;

Child of PTA chair
Child of 'business' parents with assets (money/equipment/favours for school)
Child of PTA committee
Child of teacher in the school
Child of rest of PTA
Child of bad behaviour
Child of mum who helps on day trips
Child of chatty playground parents
Child of silent playground parents
Child of working parents
Child of teacher in another school as they won't get to see it anyway.

I just had to tell my reception aged DD that being an angel was a great part. She is annoyed that she doesn't have a line to say by herself😄so we're having chats about everyone getting a go (she was Mary in nursery nativity).

I was cast as the slave who had to walk behind one of the kings carrying their gift. It was only years later as an adult that I realized the only two other non- white children in my class were also slaves (I have brown skin) and I worked out how they cast the parts. I spent a lot of my early childhood wishing I could be blonde so I could play an angel. Thank goodness things have moved on since the 80s!

My DC’s school didn’t do a traditional nativity at all. There was a Christmas play with all sorts of characters in it.

My experience is similar to other posters:

• who will be reliable, learn their lines and turn up to rehearsals?
• who is good at speaking clearly and confidently (or with some support can gain the confidence)?
• who has shown they're not flakey because we don't want a phone call on the day of nativity saying that the child now has a guitar lesson/swim meet/has the sniffles ?
• who will be good for funny or serious parts?
• who really wants to be involved but is unlikely to manage their lines? Give them a part that has fewer lines.
• who can sing in tune? Who can sing well in a group?
• which children actually WANT to have certain parts Vs which parents think their children should have a certain part?

But if you ask on Mumsnet in December:

• teachers give the best parts to children of teachers
• the PTA meet over a caldron to maliciously meddle in the allocation of parts
• the chair of the PTA gets to whisper in staff ears to get their children the best parts
• singing parts should go to whoever wants to sing
• a child who is terrified and won't speak in front of people should be given a large speaking part
• auditioning singers is very very mean because you shouldn't expect any musicality for singing parts, especially solos
• the nativity should have equal sized parts so all children in a 3 form entry school have the same amount of lines
• basically if your child hasn't got the part you think they should it's obviously a conspiracy

I have family members who are primary teachers. They say that the role of Mary goes to a child who can be reasonably trusted to behave but doesn’t need to be particularly bright because she has hardly any lines. Clever kids are the narrator or other speaking parts because they can memorise and deliver the lines. Kids likely to struggle due to shyness / naughtiness /etc are things like sheep, so that if they can’t or won’t go on they don’t cause a problem.

This is probably outing, but....
In my Mum's school, years after we'd all left, there was a famous Nativity. The three kings started fighting with each other, mid play, and trying to steal each other's gifts. The video famously shows the Headteacher crawling along the back of the stage, to break up the fight, whilst the speaking parts got louder and louder, to cover up the fighting. 😂

My mum spent years and years agonising over the casting for the nativity play and the school play at her infants school.
Fortunatly they had decided at some point that the nativity play was the yr2 only, but still that was 60 odd children to put into a play with only 10 or so actual roles - so lots of children with three lines of narration to read, angels, sheep, extra shepherds and stars. But as all the actual characters had no lines, she socially engineered it so the girl who could most do with a boost in confidence and was not normally picked for things got to be Mary and similarly for other roles. If you could manage to speak some lines (or have them programmed into an AAC at the end of her career) you got narration. It took forever to sort out based on competencies/ behaviours etc
The school play otoh, would be a creation on the lines of 'Goldilocks and the three bears go in the forest, meet the care bears and their woodland friends plus the smurfs' to get as many actual characters as possible

As the mother of a "mary" two years ago, pretty sure she was chosen as she was sensible, calm and probably wouldn't burst into tears if she dropped the baby Jesus doll unlike the year befores poor little mary.
I don't think she even had many lines, just had to follow Joseph around looking a little forlorn.

Animals tended to be the more boisterous children, angels were girls not too shy to sing aloud.

I always presumed it was behaviour and who was likely to not cry/be too shy/speak up etc.
DD was an angel and then Mary the next time. She was (is, but now 18!) very well behaved and confident and would happily be centre stage.
DS who has autism was very happy being part of the chorus both times. He sat at the back of the benches with a book but stood up with the others when singing happened even though he didn't actually sing. Primary seemed to do quite well sharing out the parts although this is a tiny village school so not too hard to find everyone a suitable role they were happy with.

Ds3 (Y2) is Joseph in this years play. From his lines (very few) and what he's told me about practising, I think it's a part that has a fair bit of standing on stage time, walking around etc but very little to actually say.

He's very confident and agreeable, very reliable in following instructions, absolutely loves being involved and on stage...but his reading is still 'working towards' where he should be so there's no way he could have many lines. Seems a good fit really.

Some of his friends who are wise men, angels, etc have 5 x the amount of lines he does which I'd consider more the main parts.

Oh and even though I had a Mary, I was never ever part of the PTA, served on a stall at the fete or was a staff member at school!!!

DS 2 missed the school nativity because of Covid, but he usually gets a reasonable and funny role in plays and assemblies.
DS1 got the biggest role in his Infant school nativity, the Angel Gabriel (yr2 only taking part ), much to the disgust of the PTA and Musical Theatre mums, who were very vocal about that 🙄.
Afterwards, several parents came up to me and said how good he'd been and how surprised they were.
Usually it's the Musical Theatre kids and the friends of the teachers kids who get the biggest roles. But every child who wants a speaking role gets a line or two.

My youngest DS always had a fun part, he's adhd, autistic, sociable and confident and so no matter what all eyes where on him. He would sing with so much enthusiasm and everything he done from knocking on the door which fell over to, pointing to a star, knocking a king off stage to dancing around he brought joy. In his year 6 leavers play they done bugsy mallone and he never had a main part as he would of struggled to concentrate but he had to go on stage and squirt silly string, by the end of his part everywhere was covered including the audience and when his canister ran out his friend passed him more. He ran riot, I slid down in my chair (I did question at the rime if it was sensible) the last goodbye song was to be solo by a young shy girl and she stood on stage shaking with tears running down her face and was obviously she wouldn't be able to do it, he came on stage held her hand and sang with her, making up the words if she never knew them.

Those who are excited about being in the nativity play, those who are naturally confident and those who have good memorising skills got the lead parts.
Every child was asked if they wanted lines to say, if they did they all got at least one sentence.
For the animals etc it was often a case of who wants to be a sheep? a cow? etc etc and the kids theselves volunteered. We even had a chameleon one year cause the kid was determind that is what he wanted to be.

In my experience its usually the most loudest, confident, obnoxious kids that get the main parts.

The entirety of ds's primary years he played the Angel Gabriel.. Can you guess ds's name?

The clever kids who are good readers and have parents who will help them learn the lines get the narrators- no one cares about Mary and Joseph!

I had to cast a nativity play at church last year. Mary was the smallest girl because she fit into the costume. Joseph was a boy who I knew would learn the lines. The innkeeper was a girl for similar reasons, ditto main angel. The kings and shepherds had no lines so we had 5 kings and 7 shepherds.

I was a plain Jane and was a xylophone player. The angels were pretty. I can't remember the others.