The ‘Sound of Music’ comes to Camelot
By Jim Flint for Ashland.news
Rogue Valley’s theaters will be brimming with holiday cheer as professional troupes and local talent bring festive shows to the stage.
There will be no shortage of holiday magic. This theater-loving valley is the perfect destination to unwrap a little seasonal joy.
Among the many offerings are the following:
Oregon Cabaret Theatre
Ashland’s dinner theater is resurrecting a Rick Robinson original, “Pine Mountain Lodge,” with all new music and an updated book.
Shows started Nov. 15 and continue to Dec. 31, with evening and matinee performances.
Robinson’s play tells the story of a returning World War II vet who’s been tasked with shutting down his late father’s flagging upstate New York hotel, only to discover it’s haunted by two quarreling ghosts, former lovers and famous dance partners. The ghosts put aside their differences and convince the young man to put on one last show to save the hotel.
In the original premiere of the musical in 2016, all the music was Irving Berlin songs.
“This time we’re featuring a selection of standards from the era,” said Robinson, the Cabaret’s co-owner with wife Valerie Rachelle.
“The original show went over very well, but I think we’ve made a lot of positive changes, with exciting new numbers and by focusing on the romances in the piece,” he said.
Some Cabaret favorites are in the cast, including Galloway Stevens, Lauren Blair, Natasha Harris, Tony Carter and John Lambie. Augusto Guardardo makes his Cabaret debut.
“There is a real Pine Mountain Lodge. It’s an old hotel in Vermont,” Robinson said.
The kitchen will be on board with dishes to match the theme.
“The show takes place in the 1940s, so the menu will feature old-school dinner house classics and some fun spins on classic holiday fare,” Robinson said.
The Cabaret is located at 241 Hargadine St., Ashland. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to oregoncabaret.com.
Camelot Theatre
Camelot will bring a classic to the stage for the holidays, “The Sound of Music.” The production team includes director Haley Jane Forsyth, associate director Ryder Kole Emerson, and choreographer Shannon Carter.
Show dates are Nov. 20 to Dec. 31, with both matinee and evening performances.
Forsyth directed and choreographed “Peter Pan” for the Camelot in 2019, and has acted in and helped direct many Rogue Valley plays over the last 13 years.
“Our production of ‘The Sound of Music’ is truly the hero’s journey of Maria,” Forsyth said. “I am thrilled for audiences to experience the world we’ve built for her.”
Maria will be played by Amirah David, Captain von Trapp by Bryon Lane, and Baroness Elsa by Lyndsay Nashington.
“We have two rotating casts of young actors playing the children,” Forsyth said. Amirah David’s daughter, Opal David, will play one of the Gretls, the youngest von Trapp child.
“I hope our audiences leave the show feeling the love and perhaps a newfound confidence to let their inner light shine through,” she said.
The Camelot is located at 101 Talent Ave., Talent. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to camelottheatre.org.
Collaborative Theatre Project
It wouldn’t be Christmas without “A Christmas Carol.” Fans can see it this season on the CTP stage. The adaptation by Patrick Barlow (“The 39 Steps”) works its magic with just five actors, directed by Tommy Statler.
Show dates are Nov. 22 to Dec. 29 at CTP’s playhouse, 555 Medford Center, Medford.
There will be 1:30 p.m. matinees and 7:30 p.m. evening performances, with extra performances added to CTP’s normal schedule of shows during a typical run.
Statler says Barlow’s adaptation takes Charles Dickens’ classic story of greed, grief, ghoulish ghosts and eleventh-hour redemption, and makes it feel new again.
For more information and to purchase tickets, go to ctpmedford.org.
Craterian Theater
The Rogue Valley’s premier road show palace and headquarters for home-grown theatrical and musical productions has five holiday-themed shows in the works for this season.
The theater is located at 23 S. Central Ave. in Medford. Find show information and purchase tickets at craterian.org or call the box office at 541-779-3000.
Following is the lineup for 2024:
Home for the Holidays II, featuring the Rogue Valley Chorale Association presenting a family-friendly concert. All four of RVCA’s ensembles will perform, singing favorite holiday songs, telling stories and sharing a visit from Santa, Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 7-8, at 3 p.m.
Disney’s Alice in Wonderland Jr., presented by Teen Musical Theater of Oregon, Dec. 14-15 at 3 p.m., Dec. 20 at 7:30 p.m., and Dec. 21 at 3 p.m. It’s a musical adaptation of the beloved Disney animated film and the Lewis Carroll stories.
Tomaseen Foley’s A Celtic Christmas, an Irish evening of song, dance, music and stories, at 3 and 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22. Foley has brought his popular show to the U.S. for more than 25 years.
Oregon Center for the Arts
SOU Theatre presents “Museum,” written by Tina Howe and directed by David Kelly.
Show dates continue through Nov. 24 with both evening and matinee performances at the Main Stage Theatre, 491 S. Mountain Ave., Ashland.
“Museum” is set in the 1930s in an unnamed New England art gallery on the final day of an exhibit titled “The Broken Silence.” A colorful world of artists, collectors, browsers, and curators — and even the security guards who watch over it all — become part of a comedic display.
To purchase tickets, go to sou.universitytickets.com.
Freelance writer Jim Flint is a retired newspaper publisher and editor. Email him at [email protected].
