December 9, 2022
By Rachel Scofield
When the town bullies, the Herdman kids, join the church Christmas Pageant (they heard about the free dessert), the community fears for the worst. The shepherds all quit in fear of being punched by Gladys Herdman, the wisemen bring SPAM instead of Frankincense, and the fire department arrives to douse a bathroom fire.
Such is the premise of Pickerington High School North’s The Best Christmas Pageant Eve, which runs December 8 – 9 at Pickerington North’s Black Box Theatre. Doors open at 6:30 pm. Tickets may be purchased for $12 each at the Pickerington Local School District’s box office, but seating is limited.
“It’s family-friendly,” said sophomore Alison Snyder, who plays Juanita and Doris. “I feel a lot of people will enjoy it, and it’s Christmassy to get you in the holiday mood.”
Christmas Pageant marks the third time junior Hanna Adams has performed with North. Audiences may recognize her from Rent and Kinky Boots – two powerful musicals in both spectacle and emotion. Christmas Pageant softly diverges from those other shows, falling more in line with what Adams believes to be the actors’ true selves.
The cast and crew are all students from director Allen DeCarlo’s advanced acting class, the “Actor’s Studio”. Students who have completed the introductory theatre course may audition for acceptance into the studio.
“Our group of friends get to come together as a class and do something great,” Adams said. “You should come see it – it’s super cute!”
Senior Kyla Wellington has really enjoyed her role as Beth Bradley, the young girl who narrates the story.
“It’s been fun to play these cute characters and get back to that little kid era again,” Wellington said. “We put a lot into the show. It will be a great time.”
Water and baked goods will be available before and after the show with proceeds benefitting addiction recovery services through the Duvall Brannon Foundation Fund. Brannon, a 2022 North graduate, passed away on November 11, 2022. A tribute page for Brannon has been established for those wishing to pay their respects.
The Panthers’ next theatre production will be Oklahoma! April 13-16, followed by the Actor’s Studio performances of Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark May 5-6.
