THE SANTALAND DIARIES Announced At AOTC

After a wildly popular production in December of 2017, An Other Theater Company is re-mounting the hilarious Santaland Diaries by David Sedaris and Joe Montello, with Jordan Kramer reprising his role in this one man show about a man who takes a job as a Macy's elf over Christmas.

We never learn our narrator's name, only his elf name, "Crumpet." But the show is based on the memoir of writer David Sedaris, who was a young, struggling writer in New York in the 1980s when he saw an ad calling for elves to work Macy's iconic Santaland. He chronicles the tantrums, enthusiasms, and absurdities of the Christmas season, through the eyes of a man wearing a green velvet costume in a department store. Sedaris first read his memoir essay on NPR in 1992, and the story was expanded and adapted for the stage a few years later.

Jordan Kramer says that the show is "the perfect antidote for an overdose of holiday cheer." The Christmas season has its charms, but it has its stresses, too, and a night laughing out loud in An Other Theater's cozy space may be just what Santa ordered. Director Kacey Spadafora says "I love that we can provide a little spice to complement the sugar permeating the air in December."

And this year's production will have a little bit of extra spice--a Christmas drag preshow! Kaitlin Lemon, Bryce Fueston, and Laura Chapman will be performing some classic hits with a drag twist. And it's only fitting that the theater is in the Provo Towne Centre Mall--it's the same setting as the play Santaland Diaries itself. So if you're looking for a break from the absurdities of Christmas shopping and everything else we put ourselves through each December, An Other Theater Company's got you covered.

The play marks the third production in the company's third season which, along the lines of the theater's mission statement, focuses heavily on stories led by women and the LGBTQ community. Some other shows in the season include SAFE by local playwright Chelsea Hickman, Good People by David Lindsay-Abaire, and The Normal Heart by Larry Kramer.

Santaland Diaries runs Fridays and Saturdays, December 6th through December 21st at 7:30pm in AOTC's blackbox theater in the Provo Towne Centre Mall. There will also be one Sunday performance on December 13th at 5:00pm.

Tickets are $12-$15 online and $14-$17 at the door. Opening night tickets are pick-your-price, and free tickets are available throughout the run for those who cannot afford them through AOTC's Play-It-Forward program. For details on this program, or to buy tickets, visit anothertheater.org.

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