The holiday season will soon be upon us, and with it a plethora of live theater choices with which to escape pushy crowds, long lines, traffic, overbearing relatives and the thought of what Jan. 20, 2025 holds in store for our nation.
There’s a conspicuous absence of productions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol this year, but that may be because the thought of a cold-hearted, bitter and selfish man seeing the error of his ways and undergoing a transformation would require a suspension of belief currently beyond human capability.
Instead, Marin County theater companies are offering several options for theater goers looking for some holiday cheer or just a reason to get out of the house.
The College of Marin Performing Arts Drama Program will be presenting Stuart Paterson’s musical adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen. This fairytale with music will be performed in the Studio Theatre on the college’s Kentfield Campus from Nov. 22 through Dec. 15. Tickets are free with an online reservation. (pa.marin.edu)
Marin Theatre in Mill Valley will be hosting five performances of the Transcendence Theatre Company annual Broadway Holiday production from Dec. 12 through 15. This all-new production features festive musical favorites, hit tunes and other on-stage antics by Broadway performers from such hit shows as Frozen, Mrs. Doubtfire and Wicked. (marintheatre.org)
Marin Shakespeare Company enters the holiday fray with a late season run of The Winter Wonderettes. This jukebox musical is a sequel to Roger Bean’s The Marvelous Wonderettes. The original was about a high school Songleader squad performing at their prom and a 10-year reunion.
The sequel finds the ladies toiling at a hardware store and pressed into entertainment action when the Santa Claus scheduled for their company Christmas party goes missing. It features 1960s versions of holiday classics including “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town,” “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Winter Wonderland.” The show runs in Marin Shakes’ indoor theater in downtown San Rafael from Dec. 20 through Jan. 5. (marinshakespeare.org)
For those missing the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come, the Ross Valley Players are offering a couple of substitute ghosts via their production of Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit. The three-act farce features a London socialite and his new wife being harassed by the medium-summoned, temperamental ghost of his first wife. The Barn Theater at the Marin Art and Garden Center in Ross will be haunted starting Nov. 15. (rossvalleyplayers.com)
As always, Marin theater companies would appreciate your consideration of gifting season tickets to your arts-minded family and/or friends. Support live local theater… while we can.
