Playwright: John Reeger; score by Julie Shannon
At: Bailiwick Repertory Theatre, 1229 W. Belmont
Phone: 773-883-1090; $20-$35
Through Dec. 31
Hey, you theater procrastinators! If you've been pussyfooting about going to see The Christmas Schooner, you'd better go now before the Bailiwick Repertory retires the ship.
Not that you wouldn't have had plenty of time to catch it. The Christmas Schooner was christened at and has subsequently docked at the Bailiwick for 12 holiday seasons.
The Christmas Schooner became such a hit that the licensing house Music Theatre International picked the show up, meaning the Bailiwick isn't the show's exclusive berth anymore ( with one area competitor being Steel Beam Theatre in St. Charles ) .
I admit to being a Christmas Schooner procrastinator, figuring that it would sail around again if I missed it. Now that I've seen it, I can't fully jump aboard this ship that garnered so many rave reviews on its first few outings.
The Christmas Schooner concerns Michigan's Stossel sailing family in the late 1800s. After receiving a letter from a homesick cousin living in Chicago, the father decides to make the first of many treacherous 300-mile journeys across Lake Michigan to deliver Christmas trees to German immigrants in Chicago.
My problem with Schooner is that playwright John Reeger and composer/lyricist Julie Shannon spend more time establishing the characters. As a consequence ,the plot sometimes moves at a glacial pace. The intra-family nationality struggles between the Swiss mother and the German father-in-law is amusing, but too much of it becomes a bit too twee for my tastes.
But largely, The Christmas Schooner offers pleasant tunes as well as a warm and fuzzy message about how certain objects like Christmas trees can evoke so many feelings of joy and nostalgia—even in sad or depressing times.
The cast, assembled by director David Zak, is very good and each vocalizes nicely together. Jim Sherman gives a solid performance as the irascible grandfather Gus, while Laura Sturm makes a nice Alma, the no-nonsense mother. As her husband, Peter, Steven Marzolf is good, though I'd like to see more of the drive that inspires someone to risk his life to bring Christmas cheer to total strangers.
Sorry to say that the weak link in the casting involves the kid performers. I know I should be kinder to young and growing actors, but it's not helpful when John Burns ( as the son Young Karl ) fails to enunciate his lyrics and dialogue, resulting in a slurred jumble. Amanda Hays does a better job of being heard, though her forced cuteness can grate if you're not in the mood for it.
As with all traditions ( especially when it's spreading optimistic Christmas cheer ) , a sense of tedium can set in. While the current Christmas Schooner isn't fully immune to this, its cast and crew appear to have their hearts in the right places, which makes this final send off to the show a fitting farewell.