In this hilarious Christmas classic, a couple struggling to put on a church Christmas pageant is faced with casting the Herdman kids–probably the most inventively awful kids in history. You won’t believe the mayhem – and the fun – when the Herdmans collide head on with the traditional Christmas story! This delightful comedy is adapted […]
A Christmas Carol Tacoma Arts Live
Published on December 19, 1843, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens has been a holiday classic for 146 years. All editions were sold out by Christmas Eve; it has never been out of print. It has appeared in hardbound and paperback editions, and numerous plays everywhere from grade school productions to professional and many grand […]
Joyeux Noel – Film Review
On Christmas Eve during the First World War, one of the most unexpected yet heart warming events occurred on the Western Front: French, British, Scottish and German soldiers settled on a cease-fire, exited their trenches, met each other in no man’s land and celebrated Christmas together. They talked, showed photos of their loved ones to […]
Holmes for the Holidays Tacoma Little Theatre Play Review
Question: When is a foot, not a foot?Answer: When the game’s afoot! Holmes for the Holidays is a play-within-a-play. When the curtain opens we see the final minutes of a production featuring the character Sherlock Holmes as he solves a crime. The actors take their bows and the Holmes actor sees someone in the audience […]
Letter: Shopping with grandpa – Somebody stole the baby
And Joseph too for that matter. And Mary, and the sheep, the cows, the donkeys, et al. Shepherds too. All gone. Stole ‘em all. An APB (all-points bulletin) has been issued to all police agencies and an Amber Alert (America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) is now posted to electronic billboards on I-5 north and south […]
Elf – The Musical – Tacoma Musical Playhouse Review
My wife Peg and I attended the opening night performance of “Elf – The Musical.” Before the orchestra’s downbeat for the Overture, Jon Douglas Rake stepped forward with great news: Elf – The Musical is completely sold out. As I studied the program I noticed that the book for the musical was written by Bob […]
Across the Fence: Not All About Kisses
Now that the Christmas season is upon us once more, let’s see who has a mistletoe hanging somewhere from a door frame or ceiling. Do you? And would you know why? Sure, you might like to snatch a kiss from the lady or gentleman of your heart underneath it. But what is it all about? […]
Robin of Lakewood – Robin Hood – Panto Musical Comedy Review
We brought along two granddaughters to CenterStage and Robin Hood. It didn’t seem like it, but it had been a decade since we last brought Bella and Sofia to a CenterStage panto. They booed with the best of the audience and volunteered to come on stage, but the younger children were selected. They had a […]
Westside Story – Statistical Probability of Joe & Bill
I find words and names to be both interesting and entertaining. Allow me to list four sample words, two familiar words, and two unfamiliar words. Sommelier – MEANING: A wine expert typically serving wine in a fancy restaurant or club. PRONOUNCED: se-mel-ya-z. Oenophile – MEANING: A wine aficionado typically drinking a higher caliber wine than […]