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A Nativity Festival (also Crèche Festival, Crèche Exhibit) is a temporary display of Nativity scenes (or crèches) often occurring around the Christmas holiday. The pieces are typically loaned for by private individuals for public showings, usually in or around churches. A nativity scene (or creche) is a manger scene depicting the birth of Jesus and most often includes mother Mary and Joseph. Some also contain shepherds, wise men, angels and a variety of animals. Nativity Festivals are becoming increasingly common in the United States and are typically hosted by local church congregations, many of them affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is unclear when the first nativity festival began, but one very early event was created in 1966 in Tarrytown, New York under Pastor William Holman. An article published in the 1970 Methodist publication Together credits Dick Martin for spearheading the idea It is certain that this event inspired others. Lois Siehl oversaw an early Nativity Festival in 1983 at the First Presbyterian Church in Johnstown, PA. While the Tarrytown display had professional artists involved and included items loaned from the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the Johnstown event began more simply, using nativities from locals willing to loan them.

Many congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) host Nativity festivals, a key part of these efforts being “to bring together those of different faiths in celebration of Jesus birth.”. Perhaps the earliest LDS congregation to create such an event was in Ann Arbor Michigan, where an annual creche exhibit began in 1983 with approximately 65 creches displayed for one night. That exhibit continued for 25 years, eventually including over 1,500 sets. The numbers of congregations sponsoring these events has snowballed: what was estimated as 50 congregations in North America in 2000 is now estimated at thousands. Many are in North America, but some LDS congregations as far as Guatemala and New Zealand host Nativity Festivals for their local communities. Some of the longest-running current festivals include Palo Alto, California (1987) and Corvallis, Oregon (1994) Sometimes live nativities are part of nativity festivals in which the events surrounding the birth of Jesus are re-enacted. Festivals often include musical performances in addition to the artistic displays. These events and associated concerts are often free, although some accept donations.