A CHRISTMAS STORY COMES TO CHEMAINUS THEATRE! Posted on November 20, 2016 by Gretta Kennedy A Christmas Story at the Chemainus Theatre is even better than the movie. Get swept up in this heartwarming, laugh out loud perfect Christmas tradition! It s here! Once again Christmas is upon us and we kicked off our favourite holiday with a family trip to The Chemainus Theatre to see A Christmas Story! And it may have been our most favourite show yet. We know for sure it was our kids favourite. They are still repeating lines from it and I even saw a request for a pink bunny onesie on one child s Christmas list. (I m not even joking.) You ll have to see the show for yourself to fully understand why.
In this photo: Stephen Sparks In this photo: Ben Williams, SImon Minkow, Joshua Williams
THIS SHOW IS A MUST FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY. Especially if you want to introduce your kids to live theatre for the first time. A Christmas Story is just oozing with nostalgia. Really. It s like cozying up in front of the movie, only better because it s live theatre. We all settled into our seats and watched as grown-up Ralphie enters centre stage and begins to narrate the Christmas story of his childhood. Do you remember back to your Childhood Christmas and the present you longed for and couldn t live without? In this photo: Brin Slydell, Brian Linds Well for Ralphie, all he wanted was an official Red Ryder 200-shot Carbine Action Range Model Air Rifle with a compass and this thing that tells time built right into the stock. The quest for this Christmas present is all consuming for this 9 year old. We watch in laughter as Ralphie appeals to mother, father, teacher and even Santa for the desired gift. But each time, his request is met with the infamous You ll shoot your eye out! response. This story has it all: a tongue freezing to a pole, a boy eating like a little piggy and even the unforgettable award-winning leg lamp. But wait, I m telling you too much, aren t I?
In this photo: Brin Slydell, Joshua Williams, Sarah Carlé, Stephen Sparks In this photo: Ben Williams, Simon Minkow, Zebastin Borjeau, Brin Slydell, Stephen Sparks, Sarah Carlé, Joshua Williams
In this photo: Melissa Young, Brin Slydell I ve seen many shows now at The Chemainus Theatre, but never one with 7 kids in it. I can t imagine what it s like to have that many on stage (or backstage for that matter) and here it was absolutely flawless. Nothing short of amazing. Having never seen the movie before, the Traveling Islander kids didn t know what to expect. Jay and I, on the other hand, sat in eager anticipation as the story unfolded. Our own memories awakened to family Christmas traditions of watching it together. And we all loved it. Every minute. I can t even remember how many times we all laughed at the same time. Seeing the glow and delight on our kids faces, hearing them laugh out loud we knew a longterm childhood Christmas memory was being birthed. The acting is superb, the set complex, yet simple (is that even possible?) and the story absolutely perfect. WHILE THE SHOW IS GREAT, IT WAS THE ENTIRE CHEMAINUS THEATRE PACKAGE EXPERIENCE THAT PUT IT OVER THE TOP. We picked the kids up from school and drove straight to the Chemainus Inn Best Western for a swim in their saltwater pool before our evening Christmas theatre extravaganza. After a couple hours of fun in the water, we took quick showers and were off to the theatre with eager anticipation.
The Chemainus Inn has won several awards for customer satisfaction, and it shows. With the location of the hotel just a few minutes down the road from the theatre, it s the ideal place to stay for your theatre getaway. The Playbill Dining Room was part of our theatre package and it added a lot to our evening. It was nice to know our dining table was ours for the evening, and our theatre seats were reserved so there was no need to rush. It s no small feat getting three children dressed all handsome and on their best behaviour for dining. At the Playbill, with spectacular food, warm atmosphere, the effort is well worth it. Salads, crab cakes (oh my), turkey, salmon, and ham all filled our bellies. However, nothing could quite compete with dessert. A child s sheer awe as he dips a huge strawberry into the chocolate fountain is simply priceless.
This boy was truly amazed as a chocolate fountain three times taller than he was towered over him. It was so big, my youngest just called it a chocolate river. The whole night was a perfect way to usher in the Christmas season. We can t recommend this experience enough to you. Get the whole Chemainus theatre luxury getaway package like we did hotel, dinner, theatre, breakfast the following morning it s so worth it. BUT YOU LL HAVE TO ACT QUICKLY, BECAUSE THE WORD ON THE STREET IS THIS SHOW IS NEARLY SOLD OUT. I promise, you won t want to miss it! Parent tip: If you re bringing your kids and they haven t yet seen the movie, DON T show them the movie first. Our kids all unanimously said they preferred the stage version after we showed them the movie at home the next day. Quick! See if there are any seats left and book your tickets while you can: www.chemainustheatrefestival.ca