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“Christmas
with the Crawfords” takes place on Christmas Eve, 1944. Joan
has recently been “fired” from MGM, and is looking forward
to the live radio broadcast from her Brentwood mansion, to be hosted
by her friend Hedda Hopper, as a way of keeping herself in public
eye as she vies for a role in a film noir piece entitled “Mildred
Pierce” offered to her, somewhat reluctantly, by Warner Bros.
Suffice it to say the broadcast does not go well. Joan is plagued
by problems, including the never-ending arrival of uninvited celebrity
guests who take over the spotlight to sing their favorite holiday
song. The broadcast itself ends in disaster, and a surprise present
from the children puts Mommie Dearest over the edge. The final mother/daughter
confrontation will likely make many of those watching reconsider
their familial relationships and long for the bosom of their own
family and home.
The legend of
Joan Crawford. It has inspired countless books, articles, television
documentaries, and… a musical comedy? Yes, a musical comedy.
“Christmas with the Crawfords,” opening December 16 is
sort of a “Mommie Dearest the Musical” with a holiday
theme, and has been packing houses for the last ten years (first
in San Francisco, now in its third year in New York).
It’s a
legend that would have horrified Miss Crawford. After all, she made
70 movies. She was glamour personified. She won an Oscar. So why
is she remembered today as the bitch who beat up her adopted children,
drank too much, and was forced to marry a Pepsi executive to save
her from a failed movie career? Chock that up to her daughter Christina,
whose infamous book “Mommie Dearest,” and the eponymous
movie starring Faye Dunaway, changed the course of the public’s
perception of Joan forever, fairly or not.
Creator Richard
Winchester and writer Mark Sargent have fashioned both a parody
of and a tribute to the “Golden Age” of Hollywood, when
movies stars were the most important people on earth, and virtually
the whole country flocked to their local movie palaces to see the
next offering from MGM, Warner Bros., and Paramount. So there’s
a little Hollywood History 101 in the show which many find interesting.
“Christmas
with the Crawfords” features a top notch cast, and as in any
musical, there’s a lot of singing and dancing which anyone
can enjoy, even those unfamiliar with the people and era covered.
The fact that it is mostly men impersonating Hollywood’s leading
ladies adds a certain “extra dimension” to the roles.
And there are all the bitchy lines one would expect in a show like
this. Don’t we all love a good comeback or two?
Perhaps the
show’s appeal is that it is just a lot of fun. “Christmas
with the Crawfords” is a refreshing antidote for the anxiety-prone
times that the holidays are for so many. Where else these days can
you see the likes of the Andrews Sisters, Judy Garland, Gloria Swanson,
Hattie McDaniel, Carmen Miranda and Ethel Merman all in one room,
singing their hearts out as if there wasn’t a care in the world?
Whatever the appeal of “Christmas with the Crawfords”
is, it seems to be broad. Young, old, gay, straight, suburban and
city dweller alike show up for a Christmas Eve with Joan and the
children that they will never forget. Wire hangers? Forget about
them. It’s Christmas…after all. And the legend continues…
Performances
are at 8 PM except Sunday Dec 21 is at 6PM and New Year's Eve is
at 7:30PM.
Total of 12
performances.
Ticket prices
$15 for adults and $12 for Students, Seniors and Theatre Arts
Guild Members.
THE
CAST
Joan Crawford………………………..………….……….
Ron Osborn
Bette Davis……………………..……....
Liz Heim, Daena Schweiger
Christopher Crawford…………….………………………..Matt
Yohe
Christina Crawford………………..……………………..Cody
Enicke
Shirley Temple…………………..………………...Jesse
E. Cozad III
Hedda Hopper…………...…….……………..Michael
Taylor-Stewart
Edith Head……………...……………………...…….Harrison
Charter
Gloria Swanson……………………………………………….Wai
Yim
Hattie McDaniel …………………………………….Derrick
Crawford
Carmen Miranda……………………………………..Michal
Simpson
Patti Andrew……………………………………………….Teri
Fender
Maxene Andrew ……………………………………………..Seth
Fox
Laverne Andrew………………………………………...Mark
Cramer
Ethel Merman………………………………………………Jeff
Nelson
Liberace…………………………………………………..Todd
Brooks
Judy Garland………………………………………………Teri
Fender
PRODUCTION
STAFF
Director……………………………………………….
Michal Simpson
Music Director………...……………...…………………
Todd Brooks
Choreographer……...…..…...…………..………….Michal
Simpson
Stage Manager…………………………………………….
Liz Kendall
Producers: ………………..…………………Liz
Heim & Joe Basque
Costume Design ………...……………
Nancy Ross, Travis Halsey,
…………………………………………….Ron
Osborn, Bill Bohannon,
………………………………………………………….Chris
Lustgarten
Props Design…..……………....………………………...Rhonda
Hall
Set Design…………………………………………….Michal
Simpson
Lighting Design…………………………………….Daena
Schweiger
Sound Design...…………………...………………...Dave
Podendorf
Publicity…..………………...……………..Todd
Brooks, Tim Kaldahl
Poster, Postcards…….………….…….………………..Todd
Brooks
Program………..……………….…..……………………..Don
Nguyen
Set Construction…….………...…………Jay
Hannah, Joe Basque,
……………Jeff Nelson, Don Nguyen, Liz Kendall,
Dave Podendorf,
……………………………………..Michael
Taylor-Stewart, Liz Heim
Wigs……………………………………..Scott
Baxter, Roger Bennett
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