"Free To Be . . . You And Me" in "The Apple Tree" singing "A Christmas Carol."

Hello! I am going to post about two shows I saw that have closed, both of which I enjoyed.

The first was "Free To Be . . . You And Me" which was co-produced by North Carolina Stage Company and TheatreUNCA. (Which I am tempted to start calling "TUNCA.") The show was staged in the Carol Belk Theatre in the full round, which was very interesting because I had never seen a show in the round. I had a lot of friends in the cast. Stephanie H., Trinity Smith, and Willie R. were all in the show. "Free To Be . . . You And Me" is based on the 1970's children's special of the same name (All of which can be found on YouTube starting here.). The show was quite fantastic, all of the performers handling their sections amicably. It was a lot of fun, especially the Atalanta sequence. I plan to steal some of the ideas (and perhaps actors) for my version. 

The other show I saw was a workshop production of "The Apple Tree" (The first act of the Bock-Coopersmith-Harnick musical of the same name.) at Montreat College. I am going to be attending Montreat College next semester, and I was very pleased to discover that the theatre department over there seems to be quite excellent. First I saw the Catalyst Series production of "Two Rooms," which was directed by the department head (See here for further thoughts on that production.), and then I saw this. The production itself could be best described as "just right." It was performed in a chapel, with just enough sets and costumes to make it interesting but not distracting. The performers were quite excellent. The play is incredibly sexist, but it was written in the 1960's, so I forgave it this fault. It was an excellent evening, and I look forward to participating in the theatre program next semester. 

I have just opened/closed the 32nd Annual Production of "A Christmas Carol" by the Montford Park Players. I portrayed the Ghost of Christmas Present and had a blast. I am going to miss my show-mates, and look forward to future shows with them. 

The special end-of-year announcement I mentioned in my previous blog is that once the year is done, I will be posting a list of EVERYTHING I have read/seen/heard this year. Please feel free to comment once it is released. I love conversation about literature/movies/TV/music/theatre.