The Best Christmas Pageant Ever: Neither a pageant nor a concert

Submitted | Nov 05, 2009

According to Producer Craig Godfrey, the upcoming production by North Frontenac Little Theatre is actually a play based on the popular short story by Barbara Robinson.

The comedy, which has a play within the play, follows the small town church group as they try to prepare for their Christmas Pageant.

When the perennial director of the local pageant breaks her leg, the church ladies panic to save the pageant. They find a willing director in one of the moms, Grace Bradley. Grace thinks it should be a nice pleasant experience but she didn’t count on two problems.

Mrs. Armstrong still wants to control everything from her hospital bed, driving Grace mad with phone calls, but that is the least of her problems.

Grace had never heard of “The Herdmans”. When word gets out that there’s free food and drinks at Sunday school rehearsals, the six, apparently parentless hooligans show up and take over the auditions.

Grace’s daughter Beth describes the Herdman Kids as a wild pack. She also says, “The Herdmans tore through the local school like those South American fish that tear the flesh of your bones.”

For a while chaos reins, but Grace sets her mind to make this year’s pageant “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”!

With 10 adults and 20 children and teens, you won’t want to miss a moment of the fun. There really is a little pageant at the end!

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever will run the weekend of December 3 through 6th in Sharbot Lake High School’s auditorium.