For local Chirstmas theater tradition is king

They're ALIVE!

When all the DVDs have stopped spinning at home and all the reels of widescreen, stereophonic blockbusters have played in crowded movie theaters, there remains no entertainment experience quite like live theater.

It's unpredictable - every night. Local actors (and a few Equity folks borrowed mostly from New York) take to the boards this holiday season to bring mistletoe, carols, Santa and a hearty cry of "God bless us, every one!" from a revived Tiny Tim who, yet again, throws away his crutches.

For Christmas theater, tradition is king as, especially in the midst of uncertain times, audiences long to return to something comfortable and homey. Virginia Stage Company offers its annual cash cow, its "story theater" version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," with a half-dozen or so actors recreating multiple characters in what amounts to as faithful a reading of the original as could be conceived on stage. (And dig the Ghost of Christmas Future. He, or she, has no lines but is the biggest, darkest ghost of them all.)

To show the power of this form of entertainment, two really big shows that are in other categories could just as easily be considered theater. The leggy Rockettes will bring countless Santas and a recreation of the Nativity drama, complete with camels and sheep, as Radio City Music Hall's annual New York tradition moves south for a stay at Scope, which had to add new performances after its original booking sold out. And "The Nutcracker" is as much theater as dance (although the dance had better be good). If you've got mice attacking toy soldiers, that's drama if there ever was.

Get a ticket and get a hug. The local holiday theater season is all about familiar scenes with new players.

Mal Vincent, (757) 446-2347, mal.vincent@pilotonline.com