Sermon Illustrations
Metropolitan Museum of Art Offers 'Workout' Tour
Maybe you've visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City before—but you've never visited it like this. Right now, the Met is experimenting with a "Museum Workout," defined as "part performance, part workout, part art tour."
Here's how it works: A small group comes together at the museum before it opens, then "line[s] up behind two tour guide dancers—both wearing sparkly cocktail dresses and sneakers. A guy with a portable speaker stands nearby."
Sean Rameswaram describes his museum workout experience: "[W]ith disco propelling us forward, we power walk, we punch the air, we daintily jog through the otherwise empty Met at nine in the morning."
According to Monica Bill Barnes, one of the workout leaders, her dance company was "approached by the Metropolitan Museum to make a dance … .We counteroffered, and asked to make a led tour that's a workout." The Met took more than two years to persuade—but now the tours are selling out.
Potential Preaching Angles: The idea of power-walking and doing squats through one of the world's most famous museums may be an odd one—but as Rameswaram explains, "[A] little music and movement really can make you see things differently." As we think about the way we "see" things in our own lives—especially when it comes to our spiritual lives and disciplines—how might we be able to approach them with a little music, a little movement, a little change of pace?