The American Shakespeare Center recreates the total theatre experience from Shakespeare’s time period. The English Renaissance stage is a participatory production and is a quite different style than what we typically think of as a theatre performance today. The Blackfriars Theatre puts the actors in the center of the audience and it is into this format that Christmas productions come to Staunton, VA.
The classic “A Christmas Carol”, written by Charles Dickens, is on stage from December 2 through December 26, 2016. This is the one play that has been performed every year since the theatre was built in 2001. Even though this stage was built to use Shakespearian methods from the actors, the Dickens play works with the audience’s imagination as a tool for the performers. Scrooge, the three ghosts, and the Cratchit family make the audience believe in second chances and the joy of the season!
Another Christmas show on stage this year is “The Santaland Diaries” by David Sedaris. The author wrote essays about his life-altering experience working as an elf in Macy’s Department Store. The Blackfriars Theatre’s play was adapted for the stage by Joe Mantello. The experiences of the writer in this one-man play fall into the category of “we can’t this up”! The play is outrageously funny as told by the tallest elf ever. Enjoy this show running from November 29 through December 26, 2016.
One other tale for this season is “The 12 Dates of Christmas”. Enjoy “Dates” from November 30 through December 31, 2016. After seeing her fiancé making out with a co-worker on national TV at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Mary’s heart is broken. She drops her engagement ring into a Salvation Army donation pot and spends the next year navigating her new life. The almost-one-woman play tells her tale of blind dates, friend dates, first dates, and bad dates after that fateful Thanksgiving Day TV show.
Each Thursday evening, the audience has the opportunity to “talk back” with the actors. Discuss the performers’ interpretation of the role. Learn more about their experiences and interactions with the audiences. Purchase tickets online for all performances.
