[Note from the blogger: Despite the title, this is NOT just a "Christmas" show, and definitely not a pageant! Each year, the show is set in a different place and time, ranging from Renaissance Italy to Shakespearean England to Appalachia to medieval France. Yes, there are Christmas carols (and the audience can join in on some of them), but also winter traditions -- songs, dances, and stories -- from that year's culture. There is something magical about singing with 1,000 other people, and joining hands for a giant line dance out into the lobby at intermission!
Definitely family-friendly (although it's a long show, so the under 5 set may have trouble making it all the way through), mostly matinee performance times, and lots of restaurants nearby for before or after the show.]
"From my 75 year-old mother-in-law to my two 7-year olds, everyone in my family connects with the magic of this show. I try to explain how the joy of this show lives on throughout the year, but the only people who ever understand are the ones who are smart enough to come see for themselves." ~James Clement, audience member
Washington Revels presents their 31st annual "Christmas Revels," through December 15 at Lisner Auditorium.
This year, we harken back to ancient Thrace – legendary home of Orpheus, "bringer of music," whose evocative notes open our story. His melodies scatter to the regions of Bulgaria, Greece, Thracian Turkey, and beyond, where each culture shapes them into traditions of its own. Revel with families of an imagined village where these colorful folk traditions weave together. Gather in the village square to celebrate the turning of the year!
Amid a swirl of beautiful costumes, meet iconic folk characters including giant Bulgarian masked kukeri; the Thracian "Christmas camel"; and the kallikantzari, goblins who make trouble during the 12 days of Christmas and are vanquished on Epiphany. Delight in children caroling door-to-door playing on silvery triangles and offering blessings with survakari sticks, participate in holiday customs old and new, and rejoice with a family at the birth of their child.
Celebrate with familiar Revels songs and sing-alongs, seasonal carols from Thrace and beyond, thrilling choral arrangements of ancient folk melodies, haunting Slavonic harmonies, fiery instrumentals and traditional dances, and a rollicking mummers’ play featuring folk characters from the region.
Our cast of over 100 singers, dancers, instrumentalists and actors, ages 8-85, includes the Washington Revels Brass and an extraordinary array of folk artists from our featured cultures: acclaimed Greek musician, Spyros Koliavasilis and his Karpouzi Trio (with Margaret Loomis and Len Newman); the exciting traditional Bulgarian folk band, Lyuti Chushki (Valeri Georgiev, director and Tzvety Weiner, lead singer, with Varol Saatcioglu, Larry Weiner, and Len Newman); Tzvety's husband, dancer/percussionist Bryndyn Weiner, and her parents (traveling from Bulgaria), celebrated Thracian singer Tanya Dosseva and master kaval player Lyuben Dossev; and the spirited folk-dance ensembles Byzantio (Greek, Aris Yortzidis, Director) and Zharava (Bulgarian, Desi Jordanoff, Director).
Come join our villagers and receive the gifts of their cultures. This high-energy Christmas Revels is not to be missed!
Tickets $12 - $50.
Family Friday 12/13 - youth tickets discounted 25%
