'Christmas Is...' fills audience with holiday cheer

The holidays are just a little merrier at Citrus College. 

Kicking off the Christmas season this week is the Performing Arts Department's annual performance of "Christmas Is…"

As much a holiday tradition as eggnog and candy canes, the holiday spectacle features a combination of music and theater.

The show is divided into two acts. 

The first is entirely musical, featuring performances from The Citrus Singers, Women's Ensemble, and the Concert Choir and Orchestra. 

Audience members are treated to tasteful renditions of Christmas classics such as "Silent Night," "Let It Snow," and "Deck the Halls."

A few numbers feature the bell choir as well, which add beautifully to the Christmas feel. 

Conducted by Keely Milliken, the Women's Ensemble songs blended together with seamless transitions, but each song had its own unique characteristic, helping distinguish it from the other songs. 

Rather than sticking to the tradition form, many are backed up by a piano and saxophone, giving it a jazzy spin. 

"Carol of the Bells" is given a modern makeover entirely, exchanging the original lyrics for a hilarious take on a host's frustrations in preparing for a Christmas party.

One would think of a choir performance as no place for comedy, but director Douglas Austin would stoke the hilarity by tickling the audience with a funny quip or anecdote to transition between songs. 

Oftentimes in a choral performance, the audience can become bored with lack of variety and abundance of songs. 

But "Christmas Is…" provides enough variety and original twists that it never stops captivating the audience.

Finishing off Act One is the Concert Choir and Orchestra, who delivered sonorous delight with the perfect harmony needed to put audience members in the mood for a Christmas story.

The second act comprises the theatrical portion of "Christmas Is…" 

The scene opens in Santa's workshop, where elves are scurrying about making the final preparations for his arduous journey around the world. 

Upon inquiring the source of his elves' distress, he is told they're stressed out because they don't have enough time, and that people in the past must've had more time to pick out the perfect gift. 

Santa decides his helpers need a historical reality check, so with the help of Father Time, they travel back in time to find out if people in the past were just as busy as they are during Christmas. 

They make a total of three stops in past Christmases: 1950's America, Victorian England, and Medieval Europe. 

With each destination, they encounter the same problem—everyone is too busy and longs for a time when people weren't so busy during Christmas. 

Featuring well over a dozen songs, the amount of variety is astonishing. 

From the Rockabilly influenced "A Rockin' Christmas," to the medieval "Bugler's Holiday," and even a rap song about…you might've guessed it: wrapping. 

The modern take on the traditional concept of Santa's workshop was particularly creative. 

Monitors were embedded in the wall, elves were typing away on computers in the background, and instead of a list of who's naughty or nice, Santa had it all stored on a pen drive. 

The ‘50s scene recreated the look of seminal variety show "American Bandstand" perfectly, complete with a doo-wop trio and hoola-hoop dancers. 

The audience was especially delighted when Jolly hopped up on the Bandstand stage and broke out in the Elvis classic "Blue Christmas," backed by the Brilliantines and the Aquanettes.

It was obvious that a lot of time and effort was put in to making the sets as true to life as possible, and made the performance all the more appreciable. 

There was enough detail to masterfully bring the scene to life, and just the right amount of authentic props to harness attention without losing focus on the actors. 

The Medieval scenes showed off the excellent costume design by Pam Gill, as characters were adorned in bright silk regalia, colorful shawls, and elaborate headwear.

The dancing sequence involving several dancers dressed in alphabet blocks demonstrated John Vaughan's tight choreography. 

All the actors seemed very comfortable in their roles, exuding an infectious jolliness.

James McGrath gave exactly the vivacious performance demanded from a character named Jolly. 

Colorful supporting roles, such as the flamboyant TV host Hector, played by Max Herzfeld, kept the humor consistent while never detracting from the central plot or mood. 

Mama Claus emanated motherly warmth, and Santa projected avuncular wisdom—truly a stellar performance from Katie Ransom and Josh Pecjak.

The elves return to Santa's workshop having learned a valuable lesson: Christmas was always busy. 

But, as Santa says, "It's the time you take out for Christmas that makes it special."

And no "Christmas Is…" performance would be complete without inviting all the children in the audience to join Santa and his elves up on the stage. 

Even if your holiday preparations keep you as busy as the productions' beleaguered elves, it'll be worth your time to take a break and watch this holiday spectacle.