I wish I had good news to report about “White Christmas” currently at the Pennsylvania Playhouse.
Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing but praise for the acting, singing, dancing, costumes, set, lighting … everything is perfectly wonderful in this charming and timeless holiday tale. From the moment you walk into the Pennsylvania Playhouse you are greeted with holiday decorations which cannot help but put you in a festive mood and the show itself will leave you smiling and filled with more holiday warmth than any hot chocolate can do
So, what could possibly be wrong with the show'
The show is currently sold out so if you don’t have tickets and are currently reading how wonderful the show is you will not be able to see it for yourself.
“White Christmas” opens on Christmas Eve in war-torn Europe of 1944. A USO style show is in progress to entertain the homesick troops and introduces us to Bob Wallace (Jason Zimmer) and Phil Davis (Seth Rohrback) who are soldiers under the command of strict but caring General Waverly (John Bracali).
The general makes a compassionate speech to his troops and wishes them a “Merry Christmas” before the story leaps ahead to 1954 where “Wallace and Davis” are now a famous Broadway song and dance team preparing to head to Florida for Christmas to work on their next show.
Before they leave the men visit a small club to hear the Haynes Sisters sing in the hopes of finding a “sister act” for their show.
The sisters are as lovely vocally as they are physically and Phil finds himself smitten by Judy (Veronica Bocian) while Bob and Betty (Heather Reese) are immediately at odds with each other. Judy and Phil come up with a plan to get Bob and Betty to spend more time together by having Bob and Phil travel to Vermont where the sisters are scheduled to perform at an inn.
The inn, it turns out, is owned by none other than General Waverly and his long-suffering manager Martha (Kathy Hontz). The inn has fallen on hard times and Martha and the general’s granddaughter Susan (Jenna Seasholtz) are keeping the bills hidden so the general will not realize how much trouble his resort is in.
Bob and Phil realize they can help the general by premiering their new show at the inn and contact their friend Sheldrake (W. Michael Hollingsworth), another former soldier, to have him contact the former soldiers under the general to have them all come to the inn on Christmas Eve for the show and to show their appreciation and thanks to General Waverly.
Romance blossoms among the four leads and there is plenty of humor, warmth, and wit. The cast and crew does a marvelous job keeping the pace moving along and never falters during the exhausting tap dance numbers they perform in “Blue Skies” and “I Love A Piano.” The timeless Irving Berlin music is sung beautifully and the audience itself is invited to join in with the titular “White Christmas.”
Every aspect “behind the scenes” is treated with as much precision as the acting and singing on stage. From the musical direction by Lucille Kincaid to the choreography by Joey Schubert to the costumes by Shawn Kerbein the show is colorful, vibrant, buoyant and festive.
The only criticism would be the set which – although colorful and clever in design – seemed a bit cumbersome for the cast to maneuver around at times. Of course, that is the only complaint about an otherwise wonderful holiday show.
Director Chip Rohrbach and his cast have done a wonderful job bringing “White Christmas” to life and should be applauded for their efforts.
In fact, it is certain that they will be applauded by the sold out audiences for the entire run of this production.
If you did not get your tickets yet you can check with the box office about an hour prior to the show to see if there have been any cancellations but there are no guarantees.
Which is a shame because this show is definitely a must see.
“White Christmas” runs through December 20th. To see if tickets are available call 610-865-6665 about an hour prior to curtain.
Visit www.paplayhouse.org to view the Playhouse’s season and purchase tickets for future performances. And purchase them early so you don’t miss out again!