Photos by Ryan C. Loyd, Rylo Media Design
The date is December 1, 1940. The town is Hohman, Indiana, currently being buffeted by blisteringly frigid winds carving through towering snowdrifts. There, inside the modest Parker home on Cleveland Avenue, a middle-aged Ralph Parker gazes on a cozy family scene from his memory, and his story begins.
It’s A Christmas Story, and it has been a beloved American Classic ever since its movie debut in 1983. Theatrical and musical versions of Jean Shepherd’s short stories of his Indiana childhood are now presented on countless stages throughout the country.
It is a pleasure to experience a joyously fast-paced two hours of nostalgia, corny jokes, clever set changes and well-cast characters.”
No one who has seen any version of A Christmas Story can ever forget the fishnet-adorned leg lamp, the kid with his tongue frozen to a flagpole, or Ralphie Parker’s 24-day quest to fulfill his Christmas wish: to get “a Red Ryder 200-Shot Carbine Action Range Model Air Rifle with a compass and a thing that tells time built right into the stock.”
As the story unfolds, Ralphie’s quest is constantly thwarted by the adults and their dismissive warnings of “you’ll shoot your eye out.”
You can enjoy SLO Rep’s buoyant, heartwarming production of A Christmas Story, which opened on November 30 to a packed house, until December 22. It’s been one of San Luis Obispo’s holiday traditions since 2014.
It is a pleasure to experience a joyously fast-paced two hours of nostalgia, corny jokes, clever set changes and well-cast characters. The narrator of the story is the adult Ralph, expertly played by an avuncular Ben Abbott, while his younger self Ralphie is played by the talented Jonah Vander Kam.
Jackson Hicks is a wonderful Randy, Ralphie’s quirky younger brother, who suffers through an immobilizing bundle of clothing piled on by his distracted but caring Mother, played beautifully by Alicia Klein. As the ratchety foul-mouthed family patriarch, Mike Mesker is a delightful Old Man.
Never precariously precious, the gang of neighborhood schoolkids are played by some fabulous younger actors, including Aurora Joy Lester-Cook (Helen), Simone Alcorn (Schwartz), Maxine Castillo (Flick), Simone Spence (Esther Jane), and Frida Vega (the intimidating school bully, Scut Farkus).
Elizabeth Martinié embodies the role of the stern, anal-retentive schoolmarm, Miss Shields, with uncomfortable accuracy.
The superb acting and impeccable comedic timing of the cast, as well as the impressive lighting and sound design, flourish under the whip-smart direction of Keven Harris.
The artistic team includes stage managers Lupita Marisol Rodriguez and Bekah Badger, wizard of scenic design David Linfield, Linfield and Suzy Newman on set dressing and props, Randal Sumabat and Barbara Harvey Abbott on costumes, and Bob Rice, Greg Peters, Valerie Pallai and Larry Bolef on set construction.
A Christmas Story at SLO Rep is not to be missed. But get your order in soon—tickets are going fast!
Editor’s Note: Get $5 off tickets to A Christmas Story by using coupon code SANTA at checkout.