Toyland tickets go on sale
The time is now to buy tickets for “The Roxy’s Legend of Toyland.”
Whether it’s visions of sugarplums, sleigh bells ring-ting-tingling or halls decked with boughs of holly, everyone has a picture in mind of what makes the holidays the most magical time of year. For many people in this region, the holidays were long-defined by the musical extravaganza “The Legend of Toyland,” a festive tradition that ended in 2011 after a 30-year run. The beloved show is making a triumphal re-entry, revived by the Franklin County Arts and Humanities Council with a complete rewrite by original playwright Lanny McAlister.
Tickets will go on sale during the Franklin County Watermelon Festival, Aug. 18-19. Tickets are limited, so McAlister urged people to buy them early.
“The Roxy seats only about half of what we did before. There is going to be a great cry for tickets,” he said. He fears there will be more people wanting to see the show than tickets available, which means some will have to be turned away. “I hate to do that, but by fire marshal rules, we can only do so much.”
Public performances are scheduled for Nov. 29-30 at 7 p.m., Dec. 1 at 7 p.m., Dec. 2 at 10 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Dec. 3 at 3 p.m. Exclusive performances for school groups will also be offered, with those reservations opening in October.
McAlister said he always hoped he would someday have the chance to bring Toyland back to the stage.
“I’m an optimist. I felt like if it was meant to be, then it would come back,” he said. “When something is near and dear to you – not doing it has been problematic. I missed it.”
He said when FCAHC’s Chase Sparks and Hillary Hall approached him about the rewrite, it was a chance he couldn’t turn down. “They gave me the opportunity to revive it, and I took it. The pressure and magnitude of it may kill me,” he joked, “but so what?”
The new show is set to be a fundraiser for the Roxy, as well as a highlight of the holiday season.
“It’s been something everyone has wanted for years,” Hall said. “I think all the shows will sell out.”
The script, McAlister explained, has been rewritten to fit the Historic Roxy Theatre stage.
“I’m anxious to see it with the new format, new everything,” McAlister said. “The story is still the same; it’s just reconfigured for the Roxy to handle … The staging of it is entirely different because we used to do it on a gym floor. Not having a big floor for acting and dancing, we have to incorporate that. We’ll see how it works. I don’t know for sure how it’s going to work until I get it on.”
The show, Hall said, “gives you the opportunity to feel like you’re a child again.”
“It’s like you’re entering a Christmas world, and all these toys are coming to life, kind of like in the ‘Nutcracker’ – it’s like it’s in a dream,” Sparks added. “It’s very intricate.”
Hall and Sparks will serve as assistant directors and will coordinate all logistics for the production. It’s something they have been working on ever since December 2016.
McAlister said he began the rewrite in February.
“I’ve spent many hours putting it together,” said McAlister, who finished his rewrite in June. “I think people are going to be really surprised with it. I’m real pleased to do it this way.”
Revisiting the show was a poignant trip down memory lane for McAlister.
“A lot of students came through in the 30 years. It was just full of memories for me. So I enjoyed that,” he said. He has always kept the memory of Toyland alive. “Once you do something, you always think about it. It didn’t get cold on me. I’ve wanted to do it for a long time.”
McAlister said the clean, family-oriented show is a fairy-tale story that children and adults alike will love. “It’s on a level everybody can understand, and it’s quite a spectacle – all the lights and everything.”
Auditions will be held Sept. 8 at 10 a.m. for women and 2 p.m. for men. Roles are available for ages 16 and older. For auditions, informal dress and shoes (tennis shoes or dance shoes) should be worn. Prepared routines will not be required. A resume/picture is optional. Rehearsals are tentatively set to begin Oct. 2.
Susan Crittenden and Melissa Godsey will choreograph. Jennifer Lowery will manage wardrobe/costumes.
For more information visit The Roxy’s Legend of Toyland on Facebook.
