The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
When I was a kid, there was no feeling that compared to Christmas morning. After an almost sleepless night, I would wake up early and impatiently wait for the rest of my family to do the same. Wrapped gifts had been under the tree for as long as several weeks, and I couldn’t wait to tear into them and find out what new toys I could play with for months to come. Would I find Legos? Action figures? Possibly a video game?
Now that my siblings and I are adults, my family really doesn’t exchange gifts anymore. The younger grandchildren are rightfully spoiled, while the rest of us just look forward to time with family. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles pass on, so the faces you’ve grown accustomed to aren’t always there. Plus, with varied schedules and homes scattered across the country, we aren’t always able to see each other and there’s less of a tradition of being together specifically on the morning of December 25th. It’s still a treasured time of year, but the anticipation of a variety of wonderful surprises has faded away.
On the evening of Monday, October 15th, I will have the privilege of beginning rehearsals for Metropolis’ production of A Christmas Carol for a third consecutive year. Like the rest of the cast and crew, I have been looking forward to this night since I was cast weeks ago. Every year has brought new challenges for me, as I’ve had the good fortune to play a different role every year. The cast and crew is always more than capable, with new names and faces brought into the mix each time. With those new names and faces comes a new dynamic every year. New moments are discovered, interpretations of classic characters are reshaped, and a fresh, unique energy fuels the altered process to a brand new final product. It’s an iconic story that most people have heard hundreds of times – and one I’ve spent a quarter of the year with for the past 3 years – yet these new ingredients always manage to deliver surprise after surprise.
Thanks to Metropolis and A Christmas Carol, I have relearned the feeling of sleeplessly anticipating coming together with family and unwrapping exciting surprises. What old friends will I encounter? What new names and faces will be added to the mix? How will the Cratchits, the Spirits, and Scrooge be interpreted? What will the new energy that results create in the end? I can’t wait to tear into this process and find out. For me, this year, Christmas morning falls on the evening of October 15th.