Glennallen, AK -- The Glennallen Theatre fall play, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” opened on Thursday, November 13. It was directed by Misty Rude and included students from the elementary, middle, and high school.
“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” is based on the book by Barbara Robinson, who also wrote the play. It’s the story of a Christmas pageant that gets taken over by the Herdman family — kids from the “wrong side of the tracks” who have never attended church, know nothing about the Christmas story, and have a reputation for being the town bullies.
In true Christmas-story fashion, by the end of the show the Hermans’ rough mannerisms are softened (at least a little bit), and the town that always shunned them learns to appreciate what they bring to the community, quirks and all.
Eleventh-grader Cadence Tubbs played Beth, who is the show’s narrator and one of the children who is initially afraid of the Herdmans. She and ninth-grader Jason Carty (acting as her brother) did a great job portraying young children who were engaging and entertaining without being overdone.
René Rock-Albert gave a great performance as their mother Beth, who in the story takes on the role of pageant director. Rock-Albert had a significant amount of stage time and was a very believable maternal figure as her character tried patiently to herd and direct dozens of young actors (including students cast from Glennallen Elementary who made their stage debuts in this show).
The actors playing the six Herdman children were all perfectly cast, with especially notable performances by Anniyah Stone (the tough cigar-smoking Imogene Herdman who decides to take on the role of Mary in the pageant), and Katelynn Terrell, whose flamboyant character is chosen to portray the heralding angel. Terrell provided a significant amount of comic relief to an already funny show.
Although a few recent Glennallen High School plays have cast a few younger actors for specific roles, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” was unique in that somewhere around half the actors were in elementary or middle school. The show also included a very impressive angel choir that sang several Christmas carols loudly and clearly without an on-stage conductor or musical accompaniment. Two graduated GHS theater alumni, Connor Miller and Elijah Nelley, also made humorous cameos as firefighters.
Standout performances by ninth-graders Preslyn Thompson and Chloe Palacios, who were cast as Beth’s friends, show that the Glennallen High School theater program has a promising future ahead.
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