Review: Almost Full Moon, Hopeful, Sparkling, But Overly Ambitious Holiday Musical

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The program opens with a promised whisper.

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“Almost full moon, almost full moon.”

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new world first words Citadel Theater The production captured a sense of excitement and mystery, setting the stage for the world premiere of Almost a Full Moon alongside eight-piece band Construction Ham.

A new holiday show commissioned by Citadel and written by Toronto’s acclaimed authors Charlotte Corbeil-Coleman Put indie bard music Hawksley Workmans 20 year old holiday album eponymous to a story that tackles the complexities of Christmas.

nevertheless. It’s the slippery sentiment that sends us back to the warehouse every year in search of the angel and her many minions, including Santa-shaped cookie cutters, gift wrap, ribbons, and Grandma’s special recipes. In her new work, the playwright puts together a collection of time-travel vignettes to paint a picture of her family, who are connected not only by blood but by circumstance. A gathering of people wounded, wandering, driven by a need to belong to something greater.

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The show opens with a vibrant rendition of Workman’s “It’s the First Snow of the Year” (directed by Daryl Crowlan, can you make it snow for this song? A boy toboggans along the floor). It was a little sad to have it scraped off…) Here we meet two of the most compelling characters: Philip (Felix de Souza) and Tara (Amanda Mela Rodriguez). In 1980s Montreal, two kids bond over snow pants and hot chocolate. Tara is a relatively new immigrant whose mother passed away. Lonely and talkative, Philip longs for his friends.

Next up are young lovers Marie Eve (Alicia Burban) and Ruben (Kaden Forsberg), who meet in France during World War II and Ruben literally parachutes into Marie Eve’s life. increase. There is a short exchange containing the address. After Ruben (who only speaks English) is seriously injured, he talks his French-speaking soldier friend, Sebastien (Luc Terrier), into writing a love letter to Marie Eve. Later, and improbably, she fled France and turned up on Reuben’s doorstep in Edmonton. Further in her unreliable twist, Marie Eve feels she has been rejected and she moves in with Sebastian.

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Meanwhile, the third vignette, set in the ’60s, boils over. Clementine (Patricia Zentilli) nurses scotch in a Montreal diner on Christmas Eve, when musician and draft evader Lewis (Kendrick’s Mitchell) comes for soup. There is a connection. She gives him Claire Fontaine’s notebook, which contains a recipe for a magic soup. Inspired, he wrote her a song, Claire Fontaine, one of his most joyful dances of the night, which became a big hit on the radio. Time passes and Luis wishes he could meet Noto’s lady. So he hooks up with a radio DJ (hilarious Peter Fernandez) and publicly pleads with her to contact him.

Hovering above all of this is the patriarch Mimi (Ryne Tremblay), who develops connections with all the characters as the play progresses. She is the overwhelming strength of her work, connecting the past, present and future in a tender, sometimes comical way. Tremblay is a much-needed cohesion in a somewhat messy tribute to love and family.

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With a sizeable cast of 10, the production has admirable qualities. The playwright who is a fan of Hawksley Workman (I am too) has taken on the daunting task of putting a Christmas story into his Christmas His album. This man is a very talented and unparalleled interpreter of poetic and poignant sentiment, cabaret he has produced about 19 albums spanning genres from pop to glam his rock.

But Irving Berlin is not. For Corbeil Coleman and Crowlan, trying to tackle his alternative theatrical form was no easy task. The show at times feels like a story stuffed into a musical sock, and that’s where the battle is.

Not all of the songs on the show are from Workman’s 2002 Christmas album, which has only nine songs. Indeed, numbers such as Bullet (set in a scene in which Reuben and Sebastian crawl through a battle zone on their bellies) and Safe and Sound (featuring Clementine and Lewis on a road trip) have been dropped into the story. feel superfluous and add to the confusion.

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Still, Almost a Full Moon manages to portray a different kind of Christmas, laying bare the tension of reality. The scene where Clementine and her mother decorate the tree is very funny. Despite the differences, there are enthusiasts who make it work, which is always reassuring.

Some elements of the near-full moon indicate that possibility. The playwright’s magic soup is a powerful symbol and a worthy throughline. And when Mimi started the show by saying, “All great stories start and end with babies,” a shiver ran down my spine.

But with Corey Sinsens’ twinkling sets and lighting designer Kimberly Purtell’s moonlight, the production, meant to be fun and so aided, feels like it’s struggling and, unfortunately, no one wants that baby home. I will not take you home.

yegarts@postmedia.com

review

almost full moon

Written by Charlotte Corbeil-Coleman, Music by Hawkesley Workman, Directed by Daryl Crowlan

Where of the Citadel Shokter Theater

when Until November 27th

tickets From $33 at citadeltheater.com or call 780-425-1820