Five Holiday Productions Onstage at Greater Cincinnati Theaters

Cincinnati’s mainstream theaters are back for the winter holidays, along with COVID-19 safety precautions (requiring proof of vaccination or a negative test, plus masking).
Some productions began before Thanksgiving, but by early December, shows from Know Theatre of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Playhouse in the Park, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati and the Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati will be delighting audiences in full force.

Know Theatre of Cincinnati

Know Theatre’s Tamara Winters has staged Reina Hardy’s witty and thought-provoking Glassheart (through Dec. 12). The starting point for Glassheart is the fairy tale “Beauty and the Beast,” but Hardy has reshaped it into a contemporary tale. Adam Tran plays the Beast, now a despairing agoraphobe, hiding out in a barren Chicago apartment after failing in Europe to find love that would end the curse of his ugliness. He’s accompanied by the last of his devoted servants, the faithful and extremely chatty Lamp (Hannah Gregory). His landlord is a thinly disguised witch (Jodie Linver) with her own motives. Rounding out the cast is a very sassy damsel in distress, Aoife (Julie Locker), who is trapped in the apartment and hoping that love will take root. It doesn’t, at least not as expected.

Glassheart has a magical undercurrent beneath a veneer of reality, punctured by Aoife’s sassy, honest observations. Gregory’s chipper Lamp is the highlight, although each actor fully embraces Hardy’s offbeat dialogue in exploring the nature of love and self-definition. An intriguing piece of theater, Glassheart is not suited for young children but will be entertaining for teens and adults. 1120 Jackson St., Over the Rhine, knowtheatre.com.

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

Perhaps even less suited for young Santa believers is Every Christmas Story Ever Told (and Then Some!) from Cincinnati Shakespeare Company (through Dec. 26). It’s the 15th year for this compendium aimed at older teens and adults, gently satirizing just about every “BHC” (“beloved holiday classic”). Miranda McGee hosts, playing Drunk Santa for the 13th year and delivering wry remarks from a sleigh at stage right. Two other veterans, the innocently and persistently manic Justin McCombs and quick-witted Geoff Barnes, join newbie Candice Handy’s Charles Dickens fan who is frustrated by her disrespectful castmates.

The show evolves from year to year with in-the-moment updates. The current gloriously over-decorated iteration has multiple mentions of the COVID-19 pandemic (Santa’s feeble greeting from the audience evokes, “Like me, you’ve forgotten how to talk to one another”) plus there is plenty of gentle humor spawned by recent news, including a running gag involving Pop star Kanye West.

The show, staged by Jeremy Dubin, involves audience interaction and lots of spur-of-the-moment ad-libbing by the cast. It’s a laugh-out-loud production from start to finish. 1195 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine, cincyshakes.com.

Playhouse in the Park

From 1991 to 2019, the Playhouse in the Park’s venerable staging of A Christmas Carol (through Dec. 30) has been a holiday favorite — a true “BHC” — with 1,115 performances attended by nearly 660,000 people. The Playhouse says 2021 is the final presentation of this version of Dickens’s 1843 story of miser Ebenezer Scrooge’s ghostly midnight conversion. A new adaptation is in the works for the holidays in 2023, using the bells and whistles of a new, under-construction mainstage. There’s no word yet about what will be offered for 2022.

It’s likely that audiences will flock to see veteran local professional actor Bruce Cromer’s Scrooge one final time. He’s played the role for 17 years, according to the Playhouse, after first appearing as Bob Cratchit for eight. The Playhouse production employs many local performers, including actor Greg Procaccino, who has played nine different characters over the years. Procaccino’s standout roles have included the startling ghost of Jacob Marley and the creepy buyer of stolen goods, Old Joe.

The production is a marvel of stage technology, recreating Victorian London by using trap doors and revolving platforms and accompanied by a marvelously eerie, ethereal soundscape. There are nearly 100 Victorian costumes used for each performance, with the costume department keeping two sizes for child actors who might grow while in the show for two or three years. A Christmas Carol uses 13 wigs and eight additional hair pieces such as sideburns, beards and mustaches. 962 Mount Adams Circle, Mount Adams, cincyplay.com.

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati

Fractured fairy-tale-based musicals are a long-running holiday tradition at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. For more than two decades, the most popular productions have been brushed up and repeated; this year it’s Cinderella (through Dec. 30) for the fourth time. The show is especially imaginative, with Cinderella as a nearsighted bookworm who has a pair of self-absorbed stepsisters and a diva stepmother. Her fairy godmother is a self-empowering “well-wisher.” The romantically challenged Prince, who also is devoted to reading, must pursue his true love with a high-top sneaker rather than a glass slipper.

ETC annually uses its excellent acting ensemble for these musicals. Brooke Steele and Patrick Earl Phillips play Cinderella and her Prince, respectively. Michael Bath and Deb Girdler are the hapless King and his overbearing Queen. Sara Mackie and Torie Wiggins are the hilarious stepsisters, and Kate Wilford is their domineering mother.
The show “sends a message that inner beauty, strength, and intelligence are the keys to success,” says ETC’s Lynn Meyers, who staged Cinderella. “It’s about finding the better part of yourself and using the rest of your life to celebrate it. It’s a delightful story that will bring laughter, hope, and smiles to adults and children. It was an easy choice to do this show right now. We can all use a little joy and hope.” 1127 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine, ensemblecincinnati.org.

Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati

Another fine holiday offering for kids is Elf The Musical JR. (Dec. 4-12) by Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati at the Taft Theatre. This 70-minute production, adapted from the 2003 movie starring Will Ferrell, was a record-breaking, sold-out hit for CTC in 2016. It’s the story of Buddy, a human orphan who ends up at the North Pole, thinking he’s an elf. But he’s too big and a clumsy toy maker, so he travels to New York City in search of his real roots.

Artistic Director Roderick Justice tells CityBeat, “After two stressful years, we need our spirits lifted through theater.” That’s precisely what Buddy’s story is likely to do for young theatergoers — and their parents. Taft Theatre, 317 E. Fifth St., downtown, thechildrenstheatre.com.