Barter Theatre Presents IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, 11/19-12/26

Holiday bells are beginning to ring in Abingdon, Virginia. Do you know what teacher says about bells ringing? "Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings!" The classic Christmas story, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE begins on November 19 at Barter Theatre.

Set in Bedford Falls, George Bailey - portrayed by Rick McVey - receives a special opportunity when he runs into Clarence Odbody. Clarence, an angel on a mission to get his wings, takes George on a journey back to the days of young love, youthful optimism and dreams of a life beyond his small town in Bedford Falls. A series of Christmas crises has brought George to question what life and the town of Bedford Falls would be like had he never been born. Clarence shows George what a wonderful life he's had all along.

"This story reminds us that no man is a failure who has friends," said Richard Rose. Rose adapted the story from the Frank Capra film, produced in 1946 starring James Stewart, Donna Reed and Lionel Barrymore.

Directed by Katy Brown, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE also stars Eugene Wolf as the greedy Mr. Potter. Most other actors, twenty-three in total, play multiple roles.

"It's our big Christmas show, and for many, Barter's Christmas show has become a perennial tradition," said Rose. "From the acting, the sets and the props, to the costumes, Barter Theatre's goal is to enhance the holiday spirit in young and old alike. Fourteen actors plus nine children, all the production departments and crew are working together to make this one of the highlights of every family's holiday season."

"Abingdon and Barter Theatre have lots of other things going on as well," said Danielle Goodrich, director of marketing for Barter Theatre. "During the entire run of the holiday show, Barter will collect food and money to give to Feeding America Southwest Virginia, formerly known as the Southwest Virginia Second Harvest Food Bank. Community involvement is very important to us at Barter Theatre and we know the Food Bank to be a deserving organization. They have a service area of 26 counties and 10 cities." To participate bring non-perishable food items to either Barter Theatre or Barter Stage II.

In addition to IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE Barter Theatre will take audiences to the third-smallest town in Texas for "A Tuna Christmas" at Barter Stage II. The Barter Players is presenting a brand new holiday children's story, ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS MY TWO FRONT TEETH.

Other Abingdon holiday events include the Abingdon Christmas Parade, set for December 4th at 11 a.m. Myra Cook, director of tourism for the town said, "It is really special this year because following the parade, we will have a free story time for children, featuring ‘The Polar Express.' A heated tent will be set up on the lawn of the Fields-Penn House and Santa will visit after the story."

For Barter Theatre ticket information, call 276.628.3991 or visit www.bartertheatre.com. Follow Barter Theatre on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. Barter Theatre is funded in part by the VCA and the NEA. IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE is sponsored by Eastman Credit Union; ABC 19, WKPT-TV; Kingsport Times-News and FM94 WMEV. For more information on Abingdon holiday events, visit www.abingdon.com.

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