Don’t let this Express leave town without you

Wendy Gibb, Leader Staff

MORRISBURG –  “Deck the halls with boughs of holly,” jack- of-all-trades, Satch, cheerfully warbles as he sweeps the Holly depot. 

“I’ll deck your boughs if you don’t shut up,” snarls Hilda Trowbridge, the Holly station master.

The town of Holly is dying; people are packing up and leaving, businesses closing down. 

It’s going to take a miracle to bring some Christmas joy to most of Holly’s remaining citizens, including Hilda.

Fortunately, in this touching production of Pat Cook’s  The Christmas Express, set in the 1950’s, on stage now at Upper Canada Playhouse, a miracle will arrive at the Holly train station Christmas eve.

And right here, before continuing,  I have to make a confession.

I like being sentimental at Christmas. I like the idea of good people finding a way out of their troubles. I like the feeling that miracles are still out there and they can still happen. I like to laugh, and still have a bit of a tear in my eye. I like the ‘magic’ that seems to be unique to just this one time of year.

And I like this play.

If you are a grinch, or you’re expecting to find lumps of coal in your stocking this year, you might scoff at the wonderful sentimentality of The Christmas Express. But then you will be denying yourself the pleasure of a show that can make audiences laugh and cry (just a little) all at the same time. 

Playhouse artistic director, Donnie Bowes, who also directed this final Playhouse production of the 2009 season, had it right when he said during an earlier press conference, “This is a beautiful, magical little story.”

Veteran Playhouse set designer John Thompson has created a set for the show that immediately suggests both the look of a small town in 1955 and the air of gloom hovering over Holly. 

His waiting room is plain, with unadorned doors and counters, and uncomfortable seats for waiting passengers (too few of those in Holly). Limp brochures and aging movie posters decorate the wooden walls. 

Yet it is also possible to glimpse, through the depot windows, the streets and houses of Holly,  hopefully covered in fresh snow. Thompson’s beautiful scenery makes promises that the play will keep.

Bowes has put together a strong cast of 10 for this Christmas show. 

Linda Goranson, who plays the crusty and bitter Hilda, is really quite wonderful. A secret despair has made Hilda the way she is, but Goranson allows the audience to see beneath her angry exterior: as the story progresses, we want things to “go right” for Hilda.

Richard Bauer, ear flap hat and plaid shirt, has some of the play’s funniest lines as Satch Brunswick. He’s an incurable optimist is Satch, although he doesn’t always get things right.

Liz Gilroy and Parris Greaves as newlyweds Donna Fay and Jerry Cummings are hilarious, even when they’re in the throes of a fight. “She’s going home to mother. He has no idea what he’s done wrong.” What marriage hasn’t been there at some point?

Susan Greenfield’s intrepid reporter, Penelope, is determined to find something newsworthy even in Holly, while Chelsea Johnson’s cheerful mail carrier would just once like to deliver mail to Hilda that isn’t immediately chucked into the garbage. 

Meredith Zwicker, who also provides the music in the play, aside from her beautiful singing voice, has a lot of fun with the role of choir leader, Myrna Hobsnagle. Myrna’s attempts to lead a rag tag rehearsal of the Twelve Days of Christmas (with a determined Satch singing about “three fat ducks”) has audiences roaring.

Lili Connor as Deborah Smith and Michael Pearson as the mysterious Mr. Fairfax bring real interest to their smaller roles. And their characters are vital to the story of Holly’s miracle. 

Doug Tangney is Leo Tannenbaum. 

From the moment he steps on stage clad in his green plaid jacket, arriving on a train “that never stops at this station”, Tangney infects the characters (and the audience) with his exuberance. 

No one in Holly knows quite what to make of Leo.

“He’s spooky if you ask me,” Maggie says. 

“I’ve got him figured out,” Satch proclaims. “He’s a Martian.”

“He’s just a salesman,” Hilda says bitterly. “That’s all he is. He just sells stuff.”

But broken watches start working in Leo’s presence, trains that didn’t run suddenly do, choirs harmonize, young lovers rekindle their love. And a bitter woman finds new joy in life.

“You just have to look at things differently,” Leo Tannenbaum says. “You’d be surprized what a little hope and imagination can do...Dreams are different for everyone. One size doesn’t fit all.”

Upper Canada Playhouse’s production of The Christmas Express has music and dancing (can the members of this cast sing!), colourful and memorable characters and a series of events that will leave audiences roaring with laughter.

And if there is a tear or two mixed in with that, why not? It’s Christmas.

The Christmas Express runs at Upper Canada Playhouse from November 19 to December 13. Contact 613-543-3713 for ticket information.