"Before the judge and the jury
next morning I had to appear"

Nicht ungewöhnlich ...

Aber ein anderer Kontext. Und verblüffenderweise zitieren die Jungs auf ihrer Seite folgenden Satz:

I am standing before the door, please let me in.
http://www.beforethedoor.com/about-before-the-door

Und jeder, aber auch jeder deutsche Englischlehrer würde ihnen dafür ein Holzlineal über den Scheitel ziehen.

http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/creativity/2009/f...

Ist doch ein Versuch komisch oder "kreativ" zu sein, oder?

Nicht unbedingt ein ganz anderer Kontext; in beiden Fällen steht jemand räumlich vor jemandem oder etwas.

Nr. 3: Glaub ich nicht. Nach dieser Geschichte haben sie den Namen ja von einer realen Tür in einer Bühnendekoration entlehnt, vor der sie agieren mussten - standen also unzweifelhaft "in front of".

2in front of:
[as preposition]:
Matilda stood before her, panting
http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/befo...

I'd say it's a combination of this meaning of "before" - which is more poetic/literary and wouldn't fit in most contexts - and the rhyme, i.e. a creative aspect. Not very useful if students see it when you've just taught them the difference between 'before' and 'in front of', but that's the real world for you :-)

be·fore (b-fôr, -fr) KEY

PREPOSITION:
Previous to in time; earlier than.
In front of.
In store for; awaiting: The young man's whole life lies before him.
Into or in the presence of: She asked that the visitor be brought before her.
Under the consideration or jurisdiction of: The case is now before the court.
In a position superior to: The prince is before his brother in the line of succession.

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictiona...

To me "before the door" sounds literary.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Years_Before...
Definitely not everyday English, but not wrong.

*edit* CM2DD was faster.

VWIW from a few UK sites

On the green before the door?"

For we are very lucky, with a lamp before the door, ...

The light switch for the stair lighting is on the right before the door into the twin bedroom

... Before the door is a sink, black and filthy for the refuse.

'and he rolled a great stone before the door of the tomb'

“in front of” is more idiomatic, but “before” is not wrong, just a little formal/literary?

It's not a question of 'right' or 'wrong', it's a question of what not-terribly-advanced learners ought to learn. It's not wrong to say

Büket ihr mir einen Kuchen, äße ich ihn

but you'd get some funny looks if you said it.

In any case, isn't it usually 'outside the door' or 'on the doorstep'?

The light switch for the stair lighting is on the right before the door into the twin bedroom

Just as an aside, to me this one has a different meaning than 'in front of'; it's really before in time or sequence, meaning that when you're walking down the hall, you come to the lightswitch before you come to the bedroom door.

and he rolled a great stone before the door of the tomb

Ich würde die KJV nicht als maßgebend für deutsches Schulenglisch betrachten.

Langenscheidt hat ein Buch mit dem Titel "Forbetter your English" herausgebracht: http://www.langenscheidt.de/produkt/5683/Forb... Das hätte Restitutus' Englischlehrern wahrscheinlich den Rest gegeben ...

If there is a sense of trepidation, I think "before" sounds better than "in front of".

I would say "before the door" is perfectly idiomatic in a literary or solemn context, but it implies that you are looking toward the door and/or intending to go through it.

You would "stand naked before your maker", but you would "stand in front of" someone in a queue (facing the same way).

Ich würde die KJV nicht als maßgebend für deutsches Schulenglisch betrachten.
Indeed, I would say that German school English exists entirely independently of any native English source.

CM2DD is in cynical mood. But I know what she means. (Still, spare a thought for the teachers. There seem to be two sorts. The gung-ho, who teach any old rubbish and lose no sleep over it, and the over-anxious. Some of my students from the 70s (and meanwhile lifelong friends) are about to retire, but they still ask for my advice on grammar and vocab.)

"Indeed, I would say that German school English exists entirely independently of any native English source." - das hat jetzt meinen Tag gemacht ;-)

There are very, very rare occasions when I would like a 'like' button on Leo- CM2DD's comment prompted one of those occasions... :D