'You'll shoot your eye out, kid': Tennessee Rep brings 'A Christmas Story' to the stage

Jean Shepherd's classic memoir of growing up in the 1940s Midwest - A Christmas Story - will usher in the holiday season at Tennessee Repertory Theatre, as the venerable Nashville professional company presents the stage adaptation of the film cult classic for a November 21-December 19 run at TPAC's Andrew Johnson Theatre.

Adapted by Phillip Grecian from the motion picture script by Shepherd, Leigh Brown and Bob Clark, the stage play is directed by Rene Dunshee Copeland, producing artistic director for Tennessee Rep, and features a seven-member ensemble of some of Nashville's best-known professional actors.

"When we did It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play during the 2007-2008 season, I was intrigued by the success of a well-loved movie story being told in a theatrical way," Copeland explains.

"It was great fun for us and for the audience; the holidays will always be a time we want to contribute to the fun of the season. I had been thinking about A Christmas Story, knowing it had been adapted into a theatre version. I am, of course, among those who watch the movie every year. I was born in small-town Indiana and have always felt a connection to it - the snow, the school building, the house.

"After The Santaland Diaries last season - which is dedicated to keeping us from getting too sentimental - it seemed appropriate to swing the other way and revisit a warm, funny story we all know and love."

Shepherd's memoir of growing up in the Midwest in the 1940s follows nine-year-old Ralphie Parker in his unflappable campaign to get Santa (or anyone else who will listen to his pleas) to give him a legendary "official Red Ryder carbine-action, 200 shot range-model air rifle."

Ralphie pleads his case before his mother, his teacher and even Santa Claus himself at Goldblatt's Department Store. The consistent response: "You'll shoot your eye out."

"Without a doubt, A Christmas Story is one of those movies that has colored my everyday life," says Sam Whited, the veteran actor who will tackle the iconic role in Tennessee Rep's production. "Nearly every day my wife [actress Erin Ramsey Whited] or I quote from the film. I am so excited to be playing Ralphie - if a little daunted at the prospect of filling that pink bunny suit."

In addition to Whited, Tennessee Rep's production features an ensemble cast including Jeff Boyet, Shane Bridges, Jamie Farmer, Andrew Kanies, Eric D. Pasto-Crosby and David Wilkerson.

"I am especially looking forward to bringing the story to the stage and in a way that only the theatre can do," Copeland contends. "You can watch the movie and have a great time, but you will have a very different experience of the story if you come see it as told by living actors, sharing the experience with fellow audience members. And we plan to celebrate the movie story - which is an amalgamation of several Jean Shepherd stories - with the audience. Our take on this cult classic will take advantage of the energy in live theatre: the give and take between audience and actors. We are really planning on having a good time revisiting this story, and I think the audience will be delighted to be a part of the party."

In fact, according to Copeland, Tennessee Rep's production, which comes as part of the company's 25^th anniversary season, many of the favorite elements from the motion picture are in the production, including the Parker family's temperamental exploding furnace; the school bully Scut Farkas; the boys' decision to place a wet tongue on a freezing lamppost; the infamous Little Orphan Annie decoder pin; the "major award" of a lamp shaped like a woman's leg in a net stocking; and the imaginative fantasy scenarios and so much more.

Copeland promises that "this irresistible piece of Americana is a cult classic and is guaranteed to warm the heart and tickle the funny bone."

A Christmas Story opens at TPAC's Andrew Johnson Theatre with a 7:30 p.m. performance on Saturday, November 21, and continues through December 19.

The performance schedule follows:

Performance Schedule:

Saturday, November 21, 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, November 24, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, November 25, 6:30 p.m.

Friday, November 27, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, November 28, 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, December 1, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, December 2, 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, December 3, 6:30 p.m.

Friday, December 4, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, December 5, 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, December 8, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, December 9, 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, December 10, 6:30 p.m.

Friday, December 11, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, December 12, 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, December 15, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, December 16, 6:30 p.m.

Thursday, December 17, 6:30 p.m.

Friday, December 18, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, December 19, 2:30 p.m. (signed performance) and 7:30 p.m.

Tickets, with prices starting at $41.50 (starting at $11.50 for students with valid ID, some restrictions apply), are on sale at the TPAC Box Offices (505 Deaderick Street in Downtown Nashville and at Davis-Kidd Booksellers in the Mall at Green Hills), or are available by telephone at (615) 782-4040 or online at www.tennesseerep.org

 

 

 

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