Culver City Public Theatre to Presents SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTIANS: THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD

Get ready for a holiday comedy with a sci-fi twist, plus a dose of B-movie madness. And to add to the weirdness, Culver City Public Theatre is doing a show in North Hollywood. It's a brand-new stage adaptation of the infamous B-movie classic, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Culver City Public Theatre, now in its 25th year and best known for its outdoor shows, returns with an indoor show for the first time since 2019. Performances will be at the Sherry Theater, in NoHo's arts distict.

The children of Mars aren't themselves of late. When they watch Earthlings experiencing the joys of the holidays, they become withdrawn and unhappy. A wise prophet is consulted, scientific research is conducted and a brain is "borrowed" all in an effort to solve the problem. Finally, it's determined that Santa Claus must be abducted from Earth and brought to Mars. The trip does not always go smoothly, as the Martian pilots are nearly done in by earthly holiday goodies, and Santa and his elf helper are determined to fight the kidnappers and return to Earth in time for Christmas.

Adapted and directed by Culver City Public Theatre board president Trace Oakley. Cast includes CCPT vets Patricia DeBorba, Maxwell Downs, Steven Milner, Jules Patrick and Averi Quinn Yorek. Also featured are Sander Acheron, Kristina DeMora, Danielle Fraser, Rich Gordon, Kenny Yik Lam, Carly Reeves, Rosalind Smith, Johanna Thur, Talin Vartanian and Justin Young.

"We were looking for something unique to produce for our December production - there are so many holiday shows that get revived and recycled and kind of done to death, so we kicked around ideas and my frequent collaborator Averi Yorek started reading me a list of holiday movies, hoping it would spark some ideas. She came across Santa Claus Conquers the Martians and asked me about it. I said, It's as strange and ridiculous as it sounds." Next thing he knew, Oakley was writing an adaptation. "The movie had tons of locations and a script that was pretty dated, so I took the basic plot and the main characters and wrote my own take on the story. I think it's a faithful updating of an inherently goofy tale."

There are nine performances, on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. And Sundays at 7 p.m.:

Dec. 1 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 2 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 3 at 7 p.m.
Dec. 8 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 9 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 10 at 7 p.m.
Dec. 15 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 16 at 8 p.m.
Dec. 17 at 7 p.m.

Run time is roughly an hour and a half, including intermission.

The Sherry Theater is located at 11052 Magnolia Blvd, North Hollywood, CA, 91601.

This performance is made possible in part by the City of Culver City and its Cultural Affairs Commission, with support from Sony Pictures Entertainment and the Culver City Arts Foundation.

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