"Santaland" Goes Multi-Media

Just one of the many awesome videos in this year's production of The Santaland Diaries! This weekend only - December 16-18 - and tickets are going fast! (We know people say that all the time, but we are fo' real...)

Bonus Fun at "The Santaland Diaries"

Since it's the 10th Anniversary of The Santaland Diaries, we wanted to pull out a few more of the ol' stops.  We've lined up some pre-show silliness and a few post-show parties.  Every night (and afternoon) of The Santaland Diaries will be a little holiday party!

Before the show:
* The surliest Santa of all will be throned in the lobby to hear your Christmas wishes (note: could make a great photo for your Christmas cards).
* We've invited the best carolers in town to share some of the lesser known carols ("Walkin 'Round in Women's Underwear," anyone?)
* You can get your own elf-name - maybe you're a Lil' Sparkly or a Sugar Cookie or a Yellow Snow?
* And 30 minutes prior to curtain, we'll be showing intro videos from Santalands past. Missed seeing Tom tormented by one of the theatre's dress forms? Come early!

And after the show, we've lined up post-show parties with some of our awesome neighbors!  We'd love for you to head straight over to the post-show party after Santaland and have a cocktail (dutch treat, y'all).  Here's where we'll be:

Thursday, December 15 - Opening Night Post-Show Party at Arcade Asheville
Friday, December 16 - Post-Show at Fiore's
Saturday, December 17 - Post-Show at Sazarac
Sunday, December 18 - Closing Matinee Post-Show at Olive or Twist

It sure would be fun to have you there! Click here for tickets!

"The 12 Days of Santaland" Promo - December 4-15!

We are so, so excited about The Santaland Diaries this year! It's our 10th year of doing the show (our 7th with the awesome Tom Chalmers) and we're celebrating your support of your local Santaland production with 12 days of giveaways! And to extend your local holiday experience, we've partnered with Asheville Grown and 12 local businesses to hand out pairs of tickets and gift cards for each of the 12 days leading up to Opening Night!  Want to be entered to win?  Here's how it works:

1 - Shop local by visiting the featured business of the day (there's a list below)
2 - Take a photo of our Santaland sign located next to the cash register
3 - Send the photo to jenny@ashevilletheatre.org or tweet it to @AshevilleTheatr by 11:59 pm that day
4 - That's it!  You've entered the contest!  We'll randomly select a winner each day to win 2 tickets to The Santaland Diaries and a $10 gift certificate to the featured business!

Here's a list of the Santaland featured businesses:

Sunday, Dec. 4 - Pack's Tavern

Monday, Dec. 5 - Chai Pani

Tuesday, Dec. 6 - The Hop or The Hop West

Wednesday, Dec. 7 - French Broad Chocolate Lounge

Thursday, Dec. 8 - Burgermeister's

Friday, Dec.  9 - Asheville Pizza & Brewing - both locations!

Saturday, Dec. 10 - Dancing Bear Toys - both locations!

Sunday, Dec. 11 - The Dripolator Asheville

Monday, Dec. 12 - The L.O.F.T. - 53 Broadway in downtown Asheville

Tuesday, Dec. 13 - The Wine Studio

Wednesday, Dec. 14 - Mountain Java

Thursday, Dec. 15 - Malaprops Bookstore & Cafe

On Pins and Needles: Notes from the Costume Shop

COLORS OF THE SEASON
Guest post from costumer Deborah Austin

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas everywhere you go backstage, in the wings, and on the Mainstage at Asheville Community Theatre, but the holidays arrived in the costume shop in mid-October. ACT’s next show, Dashing Through the Snow, calls for an elf, an angel, Mrs. Santa Claus, and three characters from Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. There is also a last-minute Christmas Eve wedding party of bride and bridesmaids and an innkeeper with an amazing wardrobe of holiday sweaters.

Set in the 1980s in a Christmas themed bed and breakfast in Tinsel, Texas, the opportunities for over-the-top outfits and hair styles are unlimited. The unit set is decked out with every imaginable Christmas ornament, wreath, and stocking in the traditional holiday shades of red and green.

I usually try to fashion a complementary color scheme to work with the set and lighting designers’ palettes, creating a picture of colors and textures woven together for each “look” of the show. (Not in Tinsel, Texas.) The goal of the costume crew has been to create the loudest, brightest collection of colors that scream “Tacky!” when set against the cardinal red and holly greens of the B&B reservation desk and living room. Think plum, lime green, orange, purple, pink, rust, and yellow. Oh yes, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas … that is, Christmas in Tinsel, Texas!

"Saturdays at ACT" - Bring your families to the theatre tomorrow!

We're so excited to be welcoming Bright Star Touring Theatre back to ACT on Saturday, November 12. They're bringing two shows in - Sadie's Spectacular Saturday at 10:00 am and Maximus Mars at 11:30 am.

These shows are just terrific. The stories are so funny and the costumes are so fabulous that it's just a bonus that the underlying message of the show is so helpful. David mentioned in the article that he hoped the shows would spark conversation between parents and children. As a mom who has seen Sadie's with my 4 year old, I can say that they absolutely do. It's so very handy to have an easily understandable story to reference when we talk about treating people with respect, or not hurting feelings with our words, or being inclusive rather than exclusive.

The other great thing about these shows? The price. $5 tickets for everyone. It's an inexpensive way to do something special together as a family. It introduces your kids to live theatre, which is such a gift. And guess what? These are kids' shows - we know your 3 year old is not going to sit completely still and quiet for 45 minutes. But these professional actors know how to handle a crowd of this age group - and you'll be surprised how engaged your child will be!

Hope you'll join us - we'd love to see you tomorrow at the theatre!

Behind the Scenes at 'Night, Mother in 35below

We caught up with director Jeff Catanese and co-star Cary Nichols before opening night. Here's what they had to say about this incredible drama:

Readers Theatre Showcase: A Delicate Balance

The Autumn Players brings Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance to life.  This study of an American family is part of the 2011-12 season of the Readers Theatre Showcase series and is directed by Anita Chapman. A Delicate Balance will be performed November 18-19 at 35below and November 20 at the Reuter Center on the campus of UNCA. All performances are at 2:30 pm. Tickets are $5 at the door. 

"Buy-one-get-one-free" for Santaland

ACT is in the giving mood this season.

As a way of saying thanks to our social media fans, ACT will be offering a "Thankful for Thursday" buy-one-get-one-free promotion for "The Santaland Diaries" -- Asheville's hippest holiday tradition.

The promotion will be good for opening night of "Santaland" -- Thursday, December 10.

Getting a free ticket to a great show has never been so easy:

1. Visit our ACT Facebook fan page. Not a fan yet? Join up!

2. Check our Facebook page this Tuesday morning for a link to our "Santaland" promotional coupon. The coupon will be a replica of the one on this page, only it will have the special code. (It's a secret right now, but not for long.)

3. Visit or call the ACT box office. Recite the code, and you will be eligible for a free ticket with the purchase of a ticket.

See, we told you it was easy. Look forward to seeing you on opening night!