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The winter holiday season is often called the most wonderful time of the year. At Sinclair Community College, the spirit of the season is being delivered courtesy of a stage production. Right in the heart of downtown Dayton, Gina Kleesattel is bringing a treat to the theatre-lovers in the form of ‘Twas: A Holiday Musical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cI am a freelance director; I live in Cincinnati. I retired from teaching the arts at the School for Creative and Performing Arts. I was a theater teacher but have been guest directing for Sinclair since 2013. I have done the holiday show every year since then,\u201d said Kleesattel in an interview with The Clarion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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According to Kleesattel, the decision to perform ‘Twas was initially made because the theater team was unable to get A Charlie Brown Christmas right despite performing it perfectly for nine years. As a result, a call was put out for plays and a new work was commissioned through a blind commission process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Patty Selleck, who was the Box Office Manager at the time, wrote the chosen play. They performed \u2018Twas last year, and it went well; this year, they updated the musical by adding a dance and another song while maintaining the same core story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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One of many things that makes \u2018Twas stand out from other holiday musical productions is its incorporation of shadow interpreting for the deaf or hard of hearing, according to the director. This means that interpreters perform alongside the actors, allowing deaf audience members to fully engage with the performance from any seat in the theater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cAnother thing is, although you could bring a four-year-old to this, they would have a good time because there is a chase through the house, and it snows and all that stuff. But it is also an excellent show for the entire family because we discuss different holiday seasons, not just Christmas,\u201d Kleesattel said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Kleesattel explained that \u2018Twas follows Kia, the cat, and Duffy, the dog, left home alone on Christmas Eve. Mistaking a noise for their family\u2019s return, they venture outside, get lost, and meet other animals who share how they celebrate holidays like Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Las Posadas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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A blizzard strikes but helpful mice guide them home just as their family returns. Most characters are animals, including three dogs, three mice, a squirrel, and an owl with only one human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cThe two themes that I hope audiences take away from this show are that no matter what holiday you celebrate, it\u2019s really about your family and friends, not so much the holiday, and also that kindness is the most important thing, accepting other people or other dogs in this case,\u201d said Kleesattel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Regarding any unique or challenging aspect of the set, Kleesattel highlighted that the show\u2019s special effects, including fireworks, which have been carefully planned to ensure maximum safety. The half-hour production is packed with action, supported by a great team with adorable costumes that are easy to move with. Many changes were made for this year\u2019s show to solve some of the problems the production team had last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cThere are a lot of animal lovers in the cast, but everybody has stories about their dogs, dogs watching pictures of people\u2019s dogs and cats, which is fun. As an actor, that is an extra challenge to play an animal that is a person acting like a real animal,\u201d said Kleesattel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Kleesattel says this year’s cast is not all Sinclair theater students. Auditions for the play were open to any resident of the city and as a result the cast is a lot more diverse in terms of experience. There are members of the cast who aren’t theatre majors and even one person from Dayton with no connection to Sinclair at all <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u00a0\u201cSo, we have a variety of ages and experiences, and when people bring that into a cast, everybody benefits. Because everything is different, everybody is different. So, sharing, observing, and matching each other\u2019s energy is beneficial. I love it when we have a mix-in cast like that,\u201d said Kleesattel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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First-time attendees will be surprised by the production’s many visual effects. The interpreting is expected to thrill viewers too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cBack when we started it with Charlie Brown and people would like hearing, audience members would ask which shows were going to be shadow interpreted because those are the ones they wanted to come to. So now we just shadow-interpret every performance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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The director told The Clarion that their favorite scene or song from the musical is the Blizzard Ballet, a dance. Everybody, including the audience, is involved at some point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cThe thing that is great about this is the length of it and audience involvement, which I think makes it extra special.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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As we all settle in to the spirt of winter, ‘Twas may be the perfect way to remind us what its all about. In the words of Kleesattel, its all about family, friends, and kindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Esperance Amuri, Intern
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