MANSFIELD — Effie James doesn’t do small things. 

When he set out to create a Christmas celebration at Latter Rain Church this holiday season, he could have just written an original play. Instead he wrote three. 

He could have invited a musical act to perform. Instead he invited a Christmas choir, original artists, and gospel hip-hop artists. 

He even could have stopped there. Instead the production includes interpretive dance, mime, poetry and more. 

You see where we’re going with this, right? 

Bring all these elements together, and you create an absolute cornucopia of local talent that makes up the Christmas Celebration that James has written, directed and produced to show this Sunday at Latter Rain Church. 

No exaggeration, the production really does include three original stage plays, a Christmas choir, original Songs and music, interpretive dance and mime, poetry, gospel hip-hop and more.

“It turns out there’s a lot of fun stuff you can do to incorporate Christmas with gospel and the birth of Christ,” James said. “We can do so many different things with the story of Christmas, and that’s why there are so many different aspects. There are so many different ways people celebrate Christmas.”

Formerly a basketball coach for the Mansfield Senior Tygers, James first started writing original plays three years ago with his debut production, “Lord Can You Hear Me?” The play told the story of two sisters brought up in the church, taught the ways of Christ and what it means to be a Christian.

The first showing of “Lord Can You Hear Me?” completely filled the building at Latter Rain Church, somehow cramming close to 500 people in a space meant for 400. It earned an encore performance at Mansfield Senior’s auditorium a few months later, and cemented James’ reputation as a local playwright. 

In 2017, James produced an Easter show that also combined dramatic skits and spoken word with praise dance, music and more. He said the Christmas production was created with the same template. 

“With the various talents people have, each of these could be a program within itself, but I feel like it’s a unique way to have people who music maybe isn’t their thing but maybe art is, or maybe watching interpretive dance is,” James said.

The original plays penned by James follow the biblical story of Christmas and even incorporate the nativity, but in a non-traditional fashion. The plays will be small vignettes sandwiched between other artistic performances – even a comedy routine. 

“I happen to think it’s neat to have an audience that doesn’t know what’s coming next,” James said. 

The show brings together nearly 50 people involved both onstage and off, with 100 percent of the cast members hailing from Richland County. 

“Anybody I’ve asked to do any of my projects, very few people ever say no,” James said. “And there are some really talented people in this production, we have some recording artists on a national level. That’s really a blessing.”

James’ family-friendly Christmas Celebration will take place on Sunday, Dec. 22 at 5 p.m. at Latter Rain Church, located at 259 Glessner Avenue. Admission is free, and free-will donations are accepted.