Theater

'A Christmas Story' production lights up the Rep

Justin R.G. Holcomb, as Ralphie’s Old Man, admires the infamous leg lamp in the Rep’s A Christmas Story.
Justin R.G. Holcomb, as Ralphie’s Old Man, admires the infamous leg lamp in the Rep’s A Christmas Story.

​Viewers of the frequent holiday screenings of A Christmas Story may not realize there is an alternate version for the stage with at least one actor who swears he has never seen the 1983 movie and has no intention of ever doing so.

​"I grew up listening to Jean Shepherd on the radio," says John Ottavino, who narrates the play and is the adult version of Ralphie Parker, the story's centerpiece. Ralphie's misadventures are the heart of the show, with his quest to convince his parents to buy him an "Official Red Ryder Carbine Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle" (known to some as a BB gun) in the years just before World War II.

A Christmas Story

7 p.m. today, 8̶ ̶p̶.̶m̶.̶ Friday and Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; with performances at 7 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8̶ ̶p̶.̶m̶.̶*Fridays and Saturdays and 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays, (with added 2 p.m. Dec. 10, Dec. 17 and Dec. 20 performances and added 7 p.m. Dec. 6 and Dec. 13 performances) through Dec. 25, Arkansas Repertory Theatre, Sixth and Main streets, Little Rock. (Preview performance at 7 p.m. today with pre-show director’s talk from 6:15 to 6:45 p.m.)

Tickets: $50, $40, $25 for students

(501) 378-0405

www.therep.org/atte…

​"I'm not going to see it," Ottavino says of the movie. "I will not. I never want to see what someone else did before I do it, and then after I do it. Sir Laurence Olivier could do it, and I'm gonna hate it, because he's not gonna do what I do. That's just it; it's pointless.

​"When I listened to Jean Shepherd, I was a kid in New York and I would get my homework done by 10 o'clock, hop into bed, turn on the radio and listen to Shepherd as I fell asleep. I would read everything he wrote and I would hear the original stories he wrote that got cobbled together to make this play, and I heard him do it. I saw about five minutes of the movie one time, and I went, 'Don't see it, that's it, no need to watch anything.'"

​Philip Grecian wrote the theatrical version of the show, which is based on the stories of noted Midwestern humorist Shepherd.

​Though the actors who play the major characters have not previously appeared on stage at the Rep, the show's director, Mark Shanahan, has a credit there, having directed last season's Peter and the Starcatcher.

​"I know the Rep did the show before, about nine years ago, I believe," Shanahan says. "But never having seen the theatrical version, I get to come with a clean slate and put it together the way we want to put it together. It's a goal for us to have people leave the theater and start talking about their favorite Christmases."

​Claire Brownell plays Ralphie's mother and notes that the show is a great nostalgia piece.

​"The show is set in about 1940 and the costume designer really did her research," Brownell says. "In the play, we get to see Ralphie's mother change, as she notices the moment right before her kid grows up. Maybe it was his last innocent Christmas."​

​Ralphie's elementary school teacher, Miss Shields, played by Rosemary Loar, says that Ralphie's reverence for her character inspires her.

​"She talks to him about where she lives and whether she has boyfriends," Loar says.

​Shanahan says one rewarding aspect of the show is its "time machine" qualities.

​"The radio is playing old music and it's a totally different world and nice to escape for a moment from iPhones and computers," he says. "You realize how much the world has changed. But with this, we can make the world the way we want it to look like."

​Ottavino echoes the thrill of time travel.

​"As the grown-up Ralphie, and now the narrator, I get to go back in time."

​The cast of 11 includes seven adults and four children.​

​Additional play events include:

• ​At noon today, the Clinton School of Public Service Distinguished Speaker Series will present the Rep's producing artistic director, John Miller-Stephany, as he moderates a discussion between members of the cast and creative team about the play. To reserve seats, email publicprograms@clintonschool.uasys.edu or call (501) 683-5239.

​m At 6 p.m. today, the play's second preview performance will include Beer Night, provided by Lost Forty Brewing and the Arkansas Times.

• ​Friday, the play's official opening night, will feature a photo booth and a holiday candy bar provided by Sweet Candy and Snacks, along with complimentary champagne and light hors d'oeuvres from RSVP Catering.

• At 1 p.m. Saturday, Little Rock Family magazine will provide a photo booth and there will be kid-friendly crafts.

• At 7 p.m. Sunday (only on Dec. 4), "Pay Your Age Night" will permit those between ages 22 and 40 to pay the equivalent of their age for a ticket. There are 100 such tickets available and only four tickets per household will be sold, with proof of age for each person in a party required when tickets are picked up. There will be a complimentary wine tasting provided by Colonial Wine and Spirits.

• At 6 p.m. Dec. 8, there will be a Beer Night provided by Stone's Throw Brewery.

• At 6:30 p.m. Dec. 9, Heathersmith will provide pre-show music in Foster's. No ticket is required for the pre-show music. The Parker Lexus photo booth will provide opportunities for holiday memories throughout the evening.

• The 7 p.m. Dec. 14 performance will be sign-interpreted by Raphael James of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He will be positioned in front of a special section, and deaf patrons are encouraged to contact the Rep box office to reserve seating.

• On Dec. 17, a party after the performance will feature the Parker Lexus photo booth, coffee, a hot cocoa bar and desserts provided by Sufficient Grounds, plus appearances by cast members in the lobby. Tickets are not required for the party.

• At 6 p.m. Dec. 23, it will be Hot Cocoa Night, presented by Parker Lexus, featuring a complimentary Sufficient Grounds hot cocoa bar with festive holiday toppings throughout the evening.

• The Christmas evening performance will be "Jammie Night," when patrons can show off their holiday pajamas.

Weekend on 12/01/2016

*CORRECTION: The Arkansas Repertory Theatre will perform A Christmas Story at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and all evening performances through the show’s run. This story had the wrong time.

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