The book of Genesis is alive and well at the Baptist Student Union.

And the BSU-sponsored play “Children of Eden,” which opens tonight at the Baptist Center, is proof.

“It’s based on the stories of Adam and Eve and Noah, but it’s also got a twist to it, a real artistic element,” said Rhonda Abbott, a campus minister and play supervisor.

“It talks about the freedom of choice God gives us, and mankind’s dilemma with that choice, in an exciting and fresh way,” Abbott said.

Quillian Mercer, a senior from Sandersville who plays a storyteller, said the play’s format makes it more energetic.

“It’s constantly moving,” Mercer said. “There are singing storytellers and dancing storytellers. We tell the story while it’s being acted on stage, so that’s a little different than most people would be used to.”

All proceeds from the play will benefit a statewide summer missionary program that sends some 150 students around the world.

Abbott said the play, as the chapter’s biggest fund raiser, is expected to raise about $7,000 for the program.

“(The missionaries) are going all over the place, from Korea to Baxley, Ga.,” Abbott said. “They’re doing everything from evangelism to working with children. They don’t get paid for it, so it’s important to raise money for their food and housing.”

Mercer said the fund-raising cause made the play special to him.

“Because I can’t go (on a mission) myself, I can do this show to help raise money,” Mercer said. “This is my way to be a missionary.”