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A Lively (and In-Person) Holiday Theater Season is Here

Another Christmas Carol: Westport Country Playhouse is resuming it’s in person Script-in-Hand series on Monday, Dec. 13 with A Merry Little Christmas Carol. The Script-in-Hand series features live readings of plays. This show has five or so performers playing all the roles in the Dickens’s work. It includes magic, holiday cheer, and music. It will be available also as an on-demand stream. For tickets, call 203-227-4177. Westport often has some very well-known actors participating in these readings.

Pre-New Year’s Eve: Perhaps we should call it New Year’s Eve Eve, but the CT Lyric Opera will present Johann Strauss’s frothy operetta Die Fledermaus on Thursday, Dec. 30 at the Bushnell in Hartford. During the New Year’s Eve ball, set in act two, the company will follow the tradition of surprise guests appearing and often performing. In this case, the press materials says it will be “special guests from across Connecticut.” For tickets, visit Bushnell.org.

Broadway Notes: More and more shows are resuming performance. While the Broadway League is not releasing box office numbers for individual shows, it is making weekly totals available; attendance seems to be good, but many shows are offering discount tickets. Expect that January and February may see shows close. Among those beginning performances are the revival of Company, Dear Evan Hansen, Harry Potter (now just one part), Mrs. Doubtfire, Slave Play, and the new musical Flying Over Sunset.

One show that opened recently, Diana, may not last long. This musical about Princess Diana received scathing reviews from just about every critic. The show has been streaming on Netflix, where it was also received negatively. Too bad, but it didn’t seem like a good idea from the beginning. It probably doesn’t help that the Netflix series The Crown has focused on Diana and Spencer, a new film about her, was just released to positive reviews.

A Sherlock Carol is another twist on the familiar story. In this case, an adult Tiny Time asks Sherlock Holmes to investigate Scrooge’s “peculiar death.” It’s off-Broadway. For tickets, visit Telecharge.com.

Holiday Streaming: Watch for holiday streaming. Keep an eye out for a repeat of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, the live musical version that aired last December. It was excellent and I hope it will be repeated.

Also, Estrella Scrooge–Christmas Carol with a Twist was a hit last December with a cast of top Broadway performers. It’s back this year. For information about tickets, visit EstellaScrooge.com.

Annie Live: NBC is presenting a live broadcast of the musical Annie on Thursday, Dec. 2. The original Annie, Andrea McArdle, will be in the show playing Eleanor Roosevelt, a newly added character. Harry Connick, Jr., is Daddy Warbucks and Annie Celina Smith is Annie.

Don’t Forget Connecticut’s Christmas Shows: Six Connecticut theaters are presenting holiday shows that range from child-friendly to adult. It’s A Wonderful Life–the Radio Play is at Hartford Stage (HartfordStage.org), Christmas on the Rocks is at TheaterWorks (TWHartford.org), Christmas at Pemberley is at Playhouse on Park in West Hartford (PlayhouseOnPark.org), A Christmas Carol in a new adaptation with new music is at the Legacy Theatre in Branford (LegacyTheatreCT,org), A Christmas Survival Guide is at Ivoryton Playhouse, (IvorytonPlayhouse.org), and the most adult show, A Who’s Christmas, is at MTC in Norwalk (MusicTheatreOfCT.com).

East Haven resident Karen Isaacs is a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle, New York’s Outer Critics Circle, the League of Professional Theater Women and the American Theatre Critics Association.. To check out her reviews for New York and Connecticut shows, visit 2ontheaisle.wordpress.com.