Christmas set to glow at Rylander Theatre
Photo courtesy of Lightwire Theater
Photos courtesy of Lightwire Theater
By Jim Hendricks
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AMERICUS — The Christmas lights that greet the Rylander Theatre audience in “A Very Electric Christmas” on Friday won’t be conventional, but the heart-warming holiday story will come across in grand style, Theater Director Heather Stanley says.
Lightwire Theater, one of the most popular performance groups to come to the Americus theater, will put on the dazzling show, complete with a traditional Christmas soundtrack. The curtain goes up at 7 p.m. at the theater, located at 310 W. Lamar St.
“All of their shows are just heart-warming,” Stanley said. “It’s a lot of fun, and it’s a real neat experience.”
Lightwire Theatre performers have a unique way of incorporating light into their shows. They use electroluminescent wiring to create all of the characters, and the show is performed entirely in the dark.
“This is the third original production they’ve brought to the Rylander Theatre, and each time it’s a truly mesmerizing experience,” Stanley said. “It’s going to be a wonderful way for families to kick off the holidays.”
The story centers on a young bird named Max who is heading south for the winter with his family, when they fly into a fierce snowstorm. Max is blown off course, ending up lost and alone at the North Pole, where Santa’s helpers are wrapping up their toy-making chores.
As he tries to reunite with his family, Max has adventures that include encounters with friendly caroling worms, dancing poinsettias, Nutcracker soldiers, mischievous mice, and the evil Rat King. It’s all done to a timeless holiday soundtrack that includes Nat King Cole, Mariah Carey and Tchaikovsky.
Stanley said the show will be just the thing to launch the holidays.
“It’s before Thanksgiving, but it’s not too early,” she said. “We did ‘The Nutcracker’ even earlier in November, and it was a sold-out show. I think folks are ready for the holidays. People are ready to get into the spirit.”
It doesn’t hurt that Americus has its downtown holiday open house the night before, complete with Santa in the park and other Christmas-related fun.
“That worked out nicely so that we could tie this show in with it all,” Stanley said. “People will be out, and we can say, ‘Hey, we have our holiday show the next night.’”
Lightwire Theater gained a national following when it reached the semifinals of Season 7 of “America’s Got Talent.”
The cast of nine is led by creator Ian Carney, who serves as artistic director and choreographer; his wife, Eleanor B. Carney, who directs, and co-creator Corbin Popp, who still performs and collaborates despite having recently graduated from dental school. All three have extensive experience in artistic dance. Carney and Popp began collaborating after they met while dancing on Broadway in Twyla Tharp’s “Movin’ Out,” which featured the songs of Billy Joel.
The characters are durable, movable sculptures created from recyclable materials. The sculpture puppets, some 16 feet tall, are covered in black cloth, then lined with electroluminescent wire, also known as el wire. The wire is powered by batteries, creating a glow that does not require any theatrical lighting. The shows are performed in the dark.
Lightwire Theater officials say it takes up to 200 hours to build a character, and a character can use up 16 batteries in a single performance.
“The kids love the show because it’s glow-in-the-dark and big, tall puppets,” Stanley said. “They also love the dinosaurs and ducks and all the animals. They really connect with the big characters.
“Their parents also connect because they saw them compete on ‘America’s Got Talent’ and here they are live on stage. A lot of them probably voted for them when they were on TV.”
The unique show “brings a lot of different people to the theater to enjoy it,” she said.
“A Very Electric Christmas” is presented by the Friends of the Rylander Theatre as part of the 2019-20 Presenter Series season. Individual tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students (K-12). All seating is reserved.
For ticket information, call the Rylander Box Office at (229) 931-0001. The box office is open 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday.
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