Welcome to Kringle, ON where it’s Christmas all year round…or at least it has been for the past week! That is, until a major corporation tries to block them from being an official Christmastown (TM). This world premiere play by Briana Brown combines the hilarity of farce with serious subtext to create a delightful adventure rife with references to all of your holiday favourites. Directed by Capitol artistic director Rob Kempson, Christmastown is sure to get you in the spirit!

Briana Brown’s text flips the “A Christmas Carol” formula on its head to create the charming story of Christmastown. The Reeve of Kringle has decided that to draw more tourism to town, they’re going to make it Christmas every day! There are costumes, a giant reindeer, and plenty of cheer to go around. Seemingly out of nowhere they receive a letter saying that if they don’t meet certain qualifications, which will be judged by three inspectors, they will no longer be able to call themselves a Christmastown (TM) and will have to cease all jolly operations. Learning the value of inclusivity and working together as a community, the characters toil diligently to pass the inspector’s visits, with plenty of hurdles and missteps along the way. This has the same feel as your favourite holiday film, where you just know that somehow everything is going to work out fine in the end, no matter how hectic it gets.

Christmastown truly feels like a modern story as it tackles issues like capitalism and racism head on. The warnings about the commercialization and making Christmas an almost multi-level-marketing scheme is brilliant; I couldn’t help but think of Charlie Brown’s frustrations with Snoopy in the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Yet society’s constant hunger for profit and control make the whole situation feel more plausible than I’d care to admit. It was likewise heartwarming to see the Reeve learn about other winter holidays and see her desire to include everyone, even if she’s been presented with the information before. It still gives that feeling of hope which we crave in both our holiday classics and in real life. 

Anna Treusch’s set and costume design brought me joy. As the story is set in a gas station/convenience store, the set is full of interesting things to look at. It’s fully stocked with all of your favourite goodies and a smattering of holiday items too! I sat there before the show marvelling at all of the details which Treusch included. I particularly loved the costumes for the Reeve; I need that cape added to my winter wardrobe ASAP! All of the sweet Christmasy costumes added the perfect amount of cheer to the story!

Christmastown has a powerhouse cast bringing this story to life for the first time. I have to start off by talking about Christy Bruce. I knew from the Jack and the Beanstalk Panto last year that she had impeccable comedic timing, but Christmastown takes that to a whole other level as she changes characters several times throughout the production; each character has its own unique voice and quirks with Bruce’s wit and charm infused into each one. Deborah Drakeford also gives a dynamic performance as Mary, the town’s Reeve. Her enthusiasm on stage is perfectly larger than life. Adrian Shepherd-Gawinski is a bubbly and sweet Jeff (not to be confused with his husband Geoff), and he truly bares it all (or close to it) in this production. Alison Deon and Mirabella Sundar-Singh make a sweet mother-daughter pair as Nora and Adeline. Deon’s speech about grief brings tears to my eyes, and Sundar-Singh plays a perfectly petulant teenager. Rounding out the cast is Darrel Gamotin as Sam, the newly relocated city slicker. Gamotin is a great foil to Drakeford and Shepherd-Gawinski’s high-energy characters, and his chemistry with both Deon and Sundar-Singh is palpable.

Christmastown is certainly on its way to being a holiday classic. Weaving in magic of all sorts and with a feel-good ending, it definitely got me in the holiday spirit! Christmastown runs until September 1st at the Capitol Theatre in Port Hope. For more information and tickets, visit: https://capitoltheatre.com/events/christmastown-2024-08-21-200-pm/

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Cover Photo: Alison Deon, Deborah Drakeford, Darrel Gamotin, Adrian Shepherd-Gawinski. Photo by Sam Moffatt.

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