Brian McDonald of the Rubicon Theatre in Ventura has put together as slick a Christmas production as anything Lawrence Welk or Mitch Miller might have imagined. The feeling is definitely nostalgic, which sometimes, given the times we live in, seems highly ironic. But there are plenty of productions of A Christmas Carol around, so there is certainly room for a feel-good show featuring six professional singers and a bevy of very talented local kids. The show is called A Rubicon Family Christmas and should find a life beyond the city of Ventura. It’s billed as “Ventura’s New Holiday Tradition,” so if you miss it this year it looks like it may be back for years to come.
The concert is framed in a glorious snowflake cutout set designed by Kurt Boetcher. The always-changing lighting is by the ubiquitous Jeremy Pivnick. The well-balanced sound is by Jonathan Burke. Steven Cahill provides the musical direction and the very inventive arrangements.
The costumes (there are a lot of them) are by Abra Flores. Besides the costumes for the cast, she also invented some great ones for Santa, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and Frosty The Snowman.
I was particularly impressed with the choreography of Cate Caplin, who managed to keeps things constantly flowing and got everyone to move flawlessly in complicated patterns.
The professional singers are all very good and some are returnees to the Rubicon stage from productions past. Trey Ellett (Rent), the amazingly talented Anthony Manough (Lion King), and Brian Sutherland (A Time For Love) are the male singers. The lovely Dina Bennett (always one of my favorite singers), Terri Bibb (Phantom), and Natalie Nucci (Kiss of The Spider Woman) make up the distaff side. The kids are all very good, too, especially Gabrielle Trainor, Xander Young, Kurt Kemper, and Shayna Cohen.
Brian McDonald and the crew at the Rubicon are to be congratulated for putting together such a professional show. Judging from the audience reaction they should have a hit on their hands for years to come. A Rubicon Family Christmas will play in Ventura at the Rubicon Theatre Company until Dec 28th.
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