Jeffrey Ellis - Page 84

Some grand holiday traditions are exactly what is needed in these turbulent times and nothing is more pleasing than the 2016 version of Nashville Repertory Theatre's live stage version of A Christmas Story, the theatrical treatment of the movie of the same name that somehow captures all the memories and nostalgia, all the laughter and mayhem of the holiday season.

While there are always rumors of closings and real estate transactions happening willy-nilly, Chaffin's Barn continues to thrive and to entertain and to give both audiences and theater folk an opportunity to get to know one another better and to be transported and transformed via the magic of live theater. I hope that Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre remains a vital part of Music City long after I've been reassigned to review shows in the afterlife.

Nuncrackers, described as "the fourth hilarious show" in Dan Goggins' long line of musicals featuring the "Little Sisters of Hoboken," takes the stage of The Larry Keeton Theatre in Donelson for a December 1-17 run, under the direction and musical direction of Ginger Newman, with choreography by Jamie London.

It's 1968 and The Wonderettes - the all-girl pop group made famous in The Marvelous Wonderettes musical - is at at Harper's Hardware for the annual Christmas Bash as Actors Point Theatre Company presents Winter Wonderettes December 15-18 in Hendersonville.

Nashville's Nutcracker, Nashville Ballet's longstanding holiday tradition returns to Tennessee Performing Arts Center's Andrew Jackson Hall, running December 3-23 for the ninth consecutive year, featuring the Nashville Symphony and weaving together the vibrant history of the city with one of ballet's most beloved and timeless tales.

Described as "a show the whole family will enjoy," The Christmas Schooner is the story of the first Christmas tree ship and the family who risked their lives to fill Chicago with the Christmas spirit; it features a powerful, moving story, an exquisite score of original music and traditional holiday favorites.

An affectionate throwback to the early tradition of American Theatre for Young Audiences, NCT's production of Cinderella is heavily influenced by the British 'Panto' tradition of fairy tales. Much as Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is presented at holiday time on stages throughout America, there are dozens of 'Panto' treatments of Cinderella presented as a family Christmas treat on stages throughout England annually.

Pipeline-Collective presents the Nashville premiere of Nick Payne's award-winning play Constellations at the Belmont Little Theatre, running December 16, 17, 18 and 19 at 7:30 p.m. Directed by David Ian Lee, the plays stars Jason Griffith and Karen Sternberg.

As challenging a work of theatrical artistry that you could possibly conceive of, Parade affords BUMT students a sublime opportunity in pursuit of excellence in a production that vociferously demands to be seen and experienced. It is one of the year's best musicals in a Nashville theatrical season that has boasted one after another significant stage triumphs, with two leading performances that are stunning in their complexity and passionate delivery.

You gotta admit: A lot has changed in this world since Nashville audiences were first treated to The Book of Mormon two years ago. The extended run in 2014 at Tennessee Performing Arts Center set records for ticket sales, garnered great critical acclaim and knocked the socks off the thousands of people witnessing the bold, brash and irreverent musical for the very first time.

Just in time to lift your spirits in the wake of a bruising presidential election season, Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre - the iconic theatrical venue, which for 50 years has delighted Nashville audiences on the chow-and-bow circuit - provides ample laughs and plenty of guffaws (along with a bountiful buffet) with their latest version of Red, White and Tuna, which transports audiences to the third smallest town in Texas for yet another down-home, Independence Day-flavored adventure.

Music Valley Event Center continues its recently launched 'After Dark' series of shows with Jeff Goode's The Eight: Reindeer Monologues, starring eight actors as Santa's reindeer dishing about "the real Kris Kringle." The Eight runs November 26-December 17.

Dickson's Gaslight Dinner Theatre closes out its 16th Anniversary Season - and celebrates the holiday season - with Kim Beagle Graham's A Totally Awesome Christmas Carol, opening Friday.

Dave McGinnis directs Sam Shepard's A Lie of the Mind, opening this Friday night at Nashville's Darkhorse Theater, as ACT 1 continues its 2016-17 season.

The Dixie Swim Club - the Jones-Hope-Wooten comedy about five Southern women who meet on their college's swim team and hold a beachfront reunion every year thereafter - opens this week at Murfreesboro's Center for the Arts, in a new production helmed by George W. Manus Jr.

Jonathan Larson's tick…tick…BOOM! closes out 2016 for Nashville's Street Theatre Company, running November 18-December 4 at Holy Trinity Church on Charlotte Pike, starring Christina Candilora, Geoff Davin and Christ Thomas.

Which brings us to today's edition of High School Drama, introducing you to one of the show's leading men: Jonathan Hankins. Here's your opportunity to get to know more about the talented HFA senior prior to opening night (You've made your reservations, right? Curtain's at 7 p.m. Don't be late!)…

The Dramatists Guild of America will offer its first event in Nashville this Saturday, November 5, at Actors Bridge Studio at Darkhorse Chapel. Free to all Nashville artists interested in new works for the stage and taking place at the Darkhorse Chapel at 4610 Charlotte Ave, the event starts at noon and is open to Dramatists Guild members and non-members alike.

There is perhaps no theme more deeply resonant in Disney's Beauty and the Beast than its treatment of the redemptive power of love to change any trouble soul - and thanks to Mike Fernandez's cinematic take on the musical theater classic and the superb leading performances of Bekah Purifoy and Scott Patrick Wilson, the new revival now onstage at Lipscomb University's Collins Alumni Auditorium has much to engage and intrigue audiences.

Who knew that a whimsical, magical play - Philip Dawkins' evocatively written Failure: A Love Story, now onstage at Nashville's Darkhorse Theater in a thoroughly engaging production from Actors Bridge Ensemble in its 20th Anniversary Season - would speak so eloquently to that sense of pervasive loss brought on by the inevitable passage of time? Certainly, not I.