A Christmas Story: Life Lessons from a Radio Cowboy

A Christmas Story
Adapted by Philip Grecian
Based on the motion picture written by Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown, and Bob Clark

Director, Jeremy Johnson; Scenic Designer, Erik D. Diaz; Costume Designer, Molly Trainer; Lighting Designer, PJ Strachman; Sound Designer, Ed Thurber; Prop Master, David Allen Prescott; Stage Manager, Steven Espach

CAST
Marianna Bassham, Mother; Shelley Bolman, Older Ralph; Steven Christy, Schwartz; Katherine Copeland, Esther Jane; Alex Dorian, Farkas; Robbie Healy, Ralphie; Alexis Lombardozzi, Helen; Bill Mootos, The Old Man; Nicholas Strafer, Randy; Lisa Tucker, Miss Shields; Mickey White, Flick

Performances through December 23, 2007 at Foothills Theatre Company
Box Office 508-754-4018 or www.foothillstheatre.com

Move over, Ebenezer Scrooge! Go back to your wonderful life, George Bailey. Ralphie Parker is coming to town in A Christmas Story, adapted from the witty and warm writings of author Jean Shepherd. The Old Man, Mother, and the quirky kids from Hohman, Indiana, are all here to bring fun and frolic to the holidays at Foothills Theatre.

Picture the Cleavers as a dysfunctional family with an aura of A Prairie Home Companion permeating their surroundings, place them in 1938 middle America, and you've got a pretty good idea of what the Parker household feels like. Mother runs the kitchen, cooking meatloaf and red cabbage and stuffing the boys into their snowsuits and out the door. Ralphie and Randy eat their oatmeal, then brave the biting cold and the neighborhood bully as they fight their way to the Harding School. The Old Man trudges home from the daily grind, barely escaping the pack of growling hounds next door, asks what's for dinner, and riffles through the stack of bills that is their mail. Day in, day out, that's what's going on in the Parker's Cleveland Street residence.

Until Christmas approaches, when a father looks forward to a savory turkey dinner and a young boy's fancy turns to dreaming up a way to get the only gift that matters: the Daisy Red Ryder 200-shot Carbine Action Air Rifle. At first blush, this seems like a one-note tune, a kid's repetitious pleading for the Christmas present that no one wants him to have for fear "you'll shoot your eye out." But the story is so much more than that, with layers of feel-good family stuff underlying the gruff exterior of The Old Man (Bill Mootos) and the relationship he shares with his wife (Marianna Bassham) and sons. It's about a nine-year old boy learning important life lessons from his parents, his friends, his teacher, his idol Red Ryder, and even Little Orphan Annie.

Director Jeremy Johnson and his cast milk all of the humor and pathos from Philip Grecian's script. After her star turn as Stella in New Repertory Theatre's A Streetcar Named Desire earlier this year, Bassham warms to this softer, more stable woman who anchors the Parker family. Mootos gives us a father who is of that era, who works hard to provide for his family and seems distracted from the mundane, but excited by the unusual. He is quite thrilled when he wins a "major award' in a newspaper contest and becomes the proud owner of a bizarre prize that creates friction in the family and is the source of many laughs. As Older Ralph, Shelley Bolman narrates the tale and patrols the stage with an easygoing manner that draws us in and keeps the tempo of the play moving at the pace of real life. Lisa Tucker has only a few scenes, but her rendition of the no nonsense schoolteacher is spot on.

The real star is 10-year old Robbie Healy, making his first appearance at Foothills. In a way, his is an easy assignment, just to act the part of a boy going through the pangs of childhood and hoping to get the Red Ryder BB gun. However, Ralphie is the central character, rarely offstage, and he carries the show on his narrow little shoulders. Healy has good chemistry with the other children and succeeds in playing a range of emotions, including feigning disinterest in the girl who likes him and disillusionment when he learns the truth about his secret decoder pin. Nick Strafer is just right as little brother Randy and Mickey White (Flick) does a great job as the boy who gets his tongue stuck on the frozen flagpole on a triple dog dare.

Scenic Designer Erik D. Diaz uses the stage well as the Parker kitchen and living room are the central focus, with Ralphie's bedroom up a flight of stairs and open to view. Miss Shields' classroom is stage right and most of the outdoor action occurs downstage or stage left. There's a big old-fashioned stove in the kitchen and a couple of overstuffed chairs and a console radio in the living room. The costumes reflect the style of the times, particularly when it comes to what the kids are wearing. I especially liked Ralphie's cow pattern chaps in one of his many fantasy scenes. Lighting and sound are without issue and always on cue. The radio even plays some Christmas music of the era for atmosphere.

All in all, this is a delightful holiday diversion and a nearly perfect production by a fine combination of Equity actors and local children. A Christmas Story is appropriate for the whole family, but will be especially enjoyed by people of a certain age who wished really hard for that one special gift and awoke on Christmas morning to find it under the tree and reaffirm their faith in – well, if not miracles, then at least in Santa Claus.

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