Christmas is one of the biggest holidays of the year and we all race to grab a piece of the action. We race to stores to buy the best presents. We race to concerts and plays. We race to hang lights and trim the tree. We race to buy the turkey and all the trimmings. December is a go-go-go month.
It’s no wonder Criselda Mierau, artistic director of Acting Out Musical Theatre and So Noted Singers, has titled her winter concert The Amazing Race – Christmas Edition. It takes place Friday, Dec. 6 and Saturday, Dec. 7 at St. Albert United Church.
Mierau has organized Christmas concerts for more than two decades, and each one has rejoiced with a message of peace, joy and love. But at a time when war is tearing countries apart and global instability is far-reaching, the socially conscious director has pinned her thoughts on hope.
“Because we have hope — peace, love and joy can exist. When you boil it down, hope is the one essential element. This show has some interesting relationship twists. From the beginning you know what’s going to happen, and by the end there is hope,” said Mierau. She was deliberately being opaque as to keep the show’s mini miracles a surprise.
The race consists of four teams with two competitors per team. Team 1 is Garner (Tanner Arnold) and Fox (Katya Mieranski), who have been best friends since childhood.
“They’re the most likeable team. They have each other’s back. One needs more support than the other, but they help each other and take turns.”
Team 2 are twin sisters Brin (Kim Breitkreutz) and Briana (Heather Rouse).
“They are constantly bickering. They interrupt each other and finish each other’s sentences. They’re very competitive and charming, but also despicable.”
Team 3 is Charles (Hugh Hindle) and Barbara (Shirley McDonald). The duo are office colleagues, but don’t even work in the same building. They’re basically strangers trying to find a way to collaborate.
Team 4 is James (Bob Heyworth) who is married to Sarah (Ann Moore.) James arrives before his wife and tells the others Sarah will arrive shortly. He says it so often, they start to think she doesn’t exist.
Mierau has developed strong ties between So Noted Choir and the newer Cleopatras, an all-female choir making its debut. In total about 50 singers will perform 26 songs that underscore a deep commitment to nurturing both the concert's theme and the season.
So Noted choristers are prominent and will sing a diversity of genres ranging from David Bowie and Queen’s Under Pressure to It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year and I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, a song of hope.
The Cleopatras take the audience through the Amazing Race Theme Song and the breezier Jingle Bells, Carol of the Bells and My Favorite Christmas Things.
“As we look around the world and see what’s happening, it’s important to talk about peace and love. For me, it’s about giving humanity hope. And we need to have hope in these dark times. If you take anything away from the concert, the one kernel to keep is hope.”
The Amazing Race – Christmas Edition is Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at St. Albert United Church, 20 Green Grove Drive. Single ticket $25, VIP ticket $35. Call Verla at 780-238-5617 or email [email protected]
