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Little Lake offers a Southern-fried holiday with “Christmas Belles”
Colin Burns and Greg Caridi rehearse for "Christmas Belles," performed this weekend at Little Lake Theatre in Washington.
"Christmas Belles" cast members Lynne Martin-Huber and Colin Burns rehearse a scene for the upcoming show at Little Lake Theatre in Washington.
Elizabeth Glyptis and Colin Burns, cast members of "Christmas Belles," rehearse a scene at Little Lake Theatre in Washington.
Kerry Benson rehearses for "Christmas Belles," performed today through Sunday at Little Lake Theatre in Washington.
Laura Grossman and Jennifer Sinatra rehearse for "Christmas Belles" at Little Lake Theatre in Washington.
Jennifer Kopach and Keith Zagorski rehearse for "Christmas Belles," performed today through Sunday at Little Lake Theater in Washington.
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No one will mistake “Christmas Belles” for the sweet and sentimental holiday fare that can found in abundance at this time of year.
It boasts three cantankerous sisters named Honey Raye, Frankie and Twink living in a tiny Texas crossroads. One is pregnant with her second set of twins, the other is in jail and the third is experiencing hot flashes. Toss into the mix family secrets, a grumpy Santa, an Elvis impersonator and a church program that could go off the rails, and you have all the ingredients of “Christmas Belles.”
The comedy will close out the 2021 season for Little Lake Theatre in Washington County, opening today at 7:30 p.m.
“It’s a very funny story with lots of recognizable characters,” according to Jena Oberg, the artistic director of Little Lake. She explained that it has a similar feel to “A Tuna Christmas,” another holiday comedy set in a tiny Texas town and a favorite of Little Lake audiences.
Oberg added, “It’s not a show you always see, like ‘A Christmas Story.”
“Christmas Belles” bowed in the 2000s, and was written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten, the team known collectively as Jones Hope Wooten. Wooten was a writer and producer for the television series “The Golden Girls” for several years, and between the three of them they have penned productions that have featured everyone from George Burns to LL Cool J.
“Christmas Belles” brings the curtain down on the Little Lake season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 was the first season in its 72-year history when it did not present a live production. It returned to live performances in the spring, initially staging its performances in an outdoor space, but then moving indoors. Throughout the season, ticket sales were limited to keep audiences distanced and masks were required. Little Lake’s 2022 season begins with the mystery “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time” on May 19.
“I think we did admirably,” Oberg said, adding that for all theater companies, “it was a challenging season.”
Showtimes for “Christmas Belles” are 7:30 p.m. today and Friday; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; 7:30 p.m. Dec. 16 and Dec. 17; and 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 18. For information, go online to www.littlelake.org or call 724-745-6300.