Naughty…but Nice! 4 Play delights in humor this holiday season

It is that time of the year to be Naughty! With holly jolly festivities happening and the generally gleeful attitude of the long awaited year-end holiday season, letting loose and being naughty (“as long as it is legal and there is consent”) is a very much excusable offence. That is also the central theme with the annual production of forte Musical Theatre Guild’s Naughty…but Nice! 4 Play, which has run to packed theaters during its annual rendition in the past few years in Calgary.

What sets this musical apart from most others is rather than follow a standard scripted formula each run, it keeps evolving not just for a production season but sometimes for each show! With the creative visionary duo of JP Thibodeau (Director) and Joe Slabe (Musical Director) behind the production, the musical is a wonderful mix of stand-up comedy-improv-skit.

The setting takes place within a mall after closing time between the four characters (an elf and three reluctant shoppers) and features 19 songs that covers various facets of contemporary news including a particular well timed feature on legal consent (or not) , Work Pot Luck and holiday party shenanigans. My absolute favorite had to be rendering of The Best Christmas Movie – an incredibly accurate frame-by-frame replay of Die Hard starring Bruce Willis – the classic Christmas action movie.

The costumes have a neo-vintage look given the fact that the costumes were designed by none other than Calgary’s eponymous street style Huntress – Aldona B. The songs run the full length of just under 90 minutes without any interval. It is a cheeky, fun evening with a lot of heart that will surely leave your screaming in the end with “Yippee ki-yay…..” with the rest of the jolly crowd.

Naughty…..but Nice! 4 Play runs from December 5 – December 17, 2017 at Lunchbox Theatre, with curtain times at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and a 3 p.m. matinee on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are available through  https://tickets.lunchboxtheatre.com/ or by calling 403-265-4292.

CAST & CREATIVE TEAM
Ellie Heath
Scott Olynek
Grant Tilly
Justine Westby
JP Thibodeau – Director
Joe Slabe – Musical Director
Lauren Thompson – Choreographer
David Smith – Set & Lighting Design
Aldona Barutowicz – Costume Design & Publicity
Kelley Cheetham – Stage Manager

Tags: lunchbox theatre, musical, naughty but nice, play

Category: Arts & Design, Calgary Lifestyle, Social Commentary