BWW Preview: PLAID TIDINGS Brings Christmas Joy and Harmonious Dysfunction to Mill Town Players

The Plaids are back!

Yes, the four boys from Forever Plaid - Francis, Jinx, Smudge and Sparky - returned for a sequel last weekend, bringing their heavenly harmonies back to Pelzer's Mill Town Players for the next two weeks.

"The boys have returned to earth again but aren't quite sure why," says Aaron Pennington, who plays Jinx, the group's high tenor. "Through the help of their heavenly friend Rosemary Clooney they discover they have returned to help spread cheer for the Christmas season."

That's the premise of Plaid Tidings, the "heaven-sent" holiday treat.

Drew Whitley plays Frankie. "I'm the one that likes to keep the show moving and the audience having a good time," he says. "I'm also the one, we find out in this show, that has very strong opinions on Rudolph and Frosty..."

"I think audiences will respond most to the holiday songs and the names/traditions from back in their day," says the show's musical director, Chase McAbee, who not only coached the four actors on their harmonies, but also leads the show's live band. "I think they will be transported back to their christmases from the 50s and 60s."

"This show is fun for the whole family," says Pennington, "and during the busy holiday season it's nice to get away from the stress of the shopping and just sit back and enjoy some gorgeous harmonious music."

Whitley predicts great reactions to the show's new twists on some Christmas classics. "We mix things up with adding in some tight harmonies," he says, "but more than that, we add in some hip-hop, we add in some scatting, and we add in some crazy props."

Whitley also thinks audiences will find reflections of their own experiences in the show's characters. "In a book that I'm reading," says Whitley, "the author says that he's never known a truly functional family. We're all dysfunctional in some way and I completely agree. Growing up, our Christmas celebrations have always been delightfully dysfunctional: my dad wasn't able to pick up the dog my parents got for my brother and I; the breakfast bacon burned and filled the house with smoke; we weren't able to make it to see my grandparents because of snow or ice. This show really echos that. Things go crazy and wrong and pear-shaped. But man, it makes for the most delightfully dysfunctional Christmas celebration that you could wish for."

McAbee sums it up as "a night of nostalgia and Noel!"

And what could be better than that?

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Mill Town Players presents Plaid Tidings, running through Dec 16 at Historic Pelzer Auditorium, 214 Lebby Street, Pelzer, SC.

Showtimes: Thurs - Sat 7:30pm, Sun 3pm

Directed and choreographed by Kimberlee Ferreira with musical direction by Chase McAbee. Starring Dalton Cole, Aaron Pennington, Mark Spung-Wiles, and Drew Whitley.

Tickets are only $12, with discounts for seniors, military, and students, and can be purchased online at www.milltownplayers.org, by calling (864)947-8000, or at the door.

Photo credit: Escobar Photography

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