Running through malls, online checkouts, price shopping, overindulgence, growing lists and shrinking timelines.
Christmas can be a mystical magical time of family and celebration. That can sometimes get clouded by the demands of the season. The irony is that our quest to make it a perfect Christmas is what adds to the stress of the season.
Rosebud Theatre seems to have an uncanny way of creating a venue that strips through the stress, the worry, and the distractions and lets you immerse yourself in the good feelings that Christmas should bring.
Rosebud’s Christmas musical May and Joe is a Rosebud original, and could be destined to be a Christmas classic. It is co-authored by Heather Pattengale and Morris Ertman. The music and lyrics were written and performed by Paul Zacharias each night of the show.
They find the Christmas spirit this year on a cold road, somewhere in Northern Ontario. On this cold road are a pregnant teen, a skeptical young man and a bitter angel. All are a little damaged, but help is just a miracle away.
In fact, it’s the miracle that plays a role in most Christian thought that is also the centerpiece of this play.
‘You’re pregnant? How? Oh, a miracle?”
As the young innocent couple struggle to reconcile, they are helped along by an angel whose wings have long since withered.
Rosebud always does Christmas right, and in fact, it’s home grown production, outshines some of the classics. The story is comical, poignant and moves long well.
The craftsmanship of the music is what builds the character of the show and sets it apart. Many of these songs can stand alone and act less as devices to carry the action or highlight, but the simple arrangements with a guitar, piano and bass carry the emotion.
Sometimes we need a reset button to refocus during the holidays and Rosebud continues to provide that outlet for another holiday season.
May and Joe runs until December 22.
