The Haugh’s annual holiday spectacular is a display of well acted performances, dance numbers and overall talent from all involved.
Act 1 began with performances by the Citrus Singers, Treble Chorus and Barber Shop Quartet. The Citrus singers sung classic Christmas songs such as ‘Silent Night’ and ‘Jingle Bells’. The onlooking audience was meet with the Citrus Singers singing in harmony, with conductor Douglas Adams leading the way. The conductors of the Citrus Singers and Treble Chorus, Douglas Adams and Sean Fitzpatrick, both played key roles in getting the crowd warmed up before each performance, to which they did with a good sense of humor and great professionalism.
The Citrus Singers also rang bells during the songs they were singing, adding a musical twist. During certain songs the bells were rung by the performers, which added to the Christmas cheer and was impressive to see. The coordination to sing, dance and ring bells was done with great skill, showing that practice was a crucial element in the development of this performance.
The Treble Chorus impressed the crowd with the song ‘A La Nanita Nana’. The crowd stood up and gave them a standing ovation.
One of the highlights of Act 1 was the Barbershop Quartet. Citrus Singers Emilio Pichardo, Jacob Gonzalez, Ethan Miley and Tim Villegas put on a stellar performance as a quartet. Their personalities combined with talent and coordination lead to an entertaining performance that had the whole audience applauding with delight.
In Act 2, ‘A Christmas is…Once Upon a Time’ delivered great acting, fun songs and visual effects to convey the timeless story of believing in the Christmas spirit and the value of family and friends during the holiday season.
Acting performances by Talia Saldana and Mario Garcia as Jennifer and Joshua St. George stood out and brought the performance to life.
One performance that stood out was Snap the Dragon, played by Jessica Spencer. Her ability to bring her character to life as a goofy dragon stole the audience’s attention. The song ‘The Fairytale Annual Christmas Ball’ was particularly impressive considering its impressive choreography and fun lyrics.
The set design and production of the performance was beautiful and eye grabbing. The colors of the sets and the perfection to which they were completed contributed to the entire performance.
From the St. George Household to Once Upon a Time Town, it all looked very professionally done. The sets are created by student workers, so it was impressive to see the kind of work students can do with set designs.
Another beautifully animated scene was when the Once Upon a Time Town characters jumped out of giant book pages with clever special effects, it looked incredible. The design of Snap the Dragon was a great sight to see as well, with impressive puppeteering that brought the dragon to life.
Overall, “Christmas Is… Once Upon a Time” brought the audience to their feet, was entertaining and a perfectly executed performance. Both Acts upheld a standard of professionalism and the effort put in by everyone involved was evident.
“Christmas Is…. Once Upon a Time” will be performed in the Haugh Performing Arts Theater at 2 p.m. on December 14 and 15 and at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on December 21. Tickets are available for purchase at https://haughpac.com.
