First Published December 16, 2009
In December, 2009, I was privileged to be a part of Christmas Rappings at Judson Memorial Church, a wonderful production directed by Russell Treyz, with musical direction by Brent Frederick. It was a wonderful experience. This is what I posted on pmsaga.com while we were in performances.
CHRISTMAS RAPPINGS at the JUDSON CHURCH
Yes, Virginia, there is an alternative to Handel's Messiah. And it's Christmas Rappings, a wonderful theater piece by Al Carmines originally done in 1969. Hey, I am not knocking the Messiah, but does it have belly dancers, or a tango? This staged oratorio does, and it has the added attraction of having your Chronicler as a cast member! The music and soloists are fantastic (no, PM will not be appearing — she's still in rehearsal for the Night Before the Night Before Christmas Concert, as per usual — but the soloists in this show send glorious notes to the church rafters, and who knows, Purple Monster might indeed BOING!!! in to see her Chronicler in the chorus).
You can read what Fox News had to say about our show at this link. Only four more performances, as of Dec. 16.
The Judson Memorial Church in the Village is worth visiting in its own right. The stained glass windows are lovely.
We opened Dec. 4 and are doing 12 performances, ending Dec. 19. This link leads you to a PDF version of our flier. There are only 99 seats for each performance, and even though all of them are "reserved," there have been empty seats each night. I suggest getting to the theater a half hour before performance and I bet you'll get in. It's worth it!