NORWICH – Beginning this evening at 7 p.m. and continuing throughout the weekend with two additional performances including a 7 p.m. Saturday show and 2 p.m. Sunday matinee, the Norwich Theater Company proudly presents Miracle on 34th Street at the Martin W. Kappel theater within the Chenango Arts Council, 27 W. Main St., Norwich.
“Our first performance as an established theater group was Christmas related, and ended up being very popular with the community – so we've continued that tradition every year,” said Director Marty Kuhn. “Miracle on 34th Street is on of the Theater Company’s favorites, so we're all very excited to be able to bring it to the community.”
The quintessential 1947 Christmas classic tells the tale of an old man by the name of Kris Kringle (Richard Heim) who fills in for an intoxicated Santa in Macy's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Kringle proves to be such a hit that he is soon appearing regularly at the chain's main store in midtown Manhattan. When Kringle surprises customers and employees alike by claiming that he really is Santa Claus, which inevitably leads to a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity.
Kringle inexplicably seems to be able to speak many languages and knows just what kids would like to have and creates a bit of a sensation when he refers shoppers to other stores rather than Macy's. When Kris has a run-in with the department store's psychological tester, the man tries to have him committed. Doris Walker's (Jennifer Oliver) lawyer friend (and neighbor) Fred Gailey (Scott Douglas) attempts to prove in court that Kris is the real Santa Claus. More important to Kris throughout all of this is to get Doris and her daughter Susan (Isabella Natoli) to believe in him.
Kuhn says that the large cast of 35 are eager to show off their talent over the next three days, and that they've all been very hard at work over the last eight weeks in preparation.
“This is one of the largest casts that we've had,” said Kuhn, “everyone's been very focused, it's going to be a great performance.”
With too many cast members to list individually, Kuhn did say that members hail from all point of Chenango County, making the production a product of the community.
