Christmas comes in February for local theatre
A short drive up the road from Wangara is the Limelight Theatre, which will be celebrating Christmas this February instead of December
With its latest production “Season’s Greetings”, Christmas is here again which might be too soon for some of us. However for its first 2014 production a suburban dysfunctional family Christmas is the centrepiece of a farcical black comedy. It is set in 1980 across 3 days, Christmas Eve, Christmas day, and Boxing Day. The play features bad cooking, two feuding uncles, a dreadful puppet show and a shooting with lots of alcohol-fuelled antics in between.
It is written by prolific British playwright Alan Ayckbourn and directed by Gordon Park. Park who also performs in the play believes that it:
“...can be appreciated by anyone who has ever experienced a family Christmas and the array of challenges it can sometimes bring."
And for that reason is as relevant today.
The BBC in 1986 produced a television version, and there have been many professional renditions including being staged in the West End at the Apollo Theatre. It premiered in September 1980 proving that it’s a play not just for Christmas. Park is acting for the second time in this play with the most significant challenge being to “keep the cast and crew in the festive spirit from November when rehearsals started to opening night”.
Theatres make use of poster printing to advertise upcoming performances. Opening night is 6th February 8pm.