No other holiday brings out the spirit of the season like Christmas. Each family has traditions that make this time of the year special and unique from church services, special foods, visits with Santa’s and movies; every year brings the nostalgic familiarity of childhood joy. The season is marked by iconic symbolism that sparks the spirit and marks the subconscious ribbon cutting of Christmas time. Nothing says “tis the season” like seeing iconic holiday films flood the airwaves and streaming services.
A Christmas Story is one such movie and the Gilbert Theater is bringing the beloved holiday classic to the stage from Nov. 22 through Dec. 8. Relive some of the most iconic theatrical moments from the stage. Showtimes are Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. General admission tickets are $22 and can be purchased online at https://bit.ly/4hCNp1E or at the box office at the Gilbert Theater.
A Christmas Story is one of the most iconic Christmas movies, with lines like “I Triple-Dog-Dare You!” and “Some men are Baptists, others Catholics; my father was an Oldsmobile man.”
The Gilbert Theater website describes the adapted stage play as, “Based on the 1983 film, Philip Grecian’s play brings humorist Jean Shepherd's memoir of growing up in the midwest in the 1940s to the stage as we follow 9-year-old Ralphie in his quest to get a genuine Red Ryder BB gun under the tree for Christmas. Ralphie pleads his case before his mother, his teacher, and even Santa Claus himself at Higbee's Department Store. The consistent response is ‘You'll shoot your eye out!’ All the elements from the beloved motion picture are here...”
The cast is full of exceptional veteran talent as well as some amazing up and coming actors.
Main Cast Lineup
Katie Herring- “Mother”
A Fayetteville native, Herring is currently a Theater Instructor at Fayetteville Technical Community College. While she hasn’t hit the stage as an actor in a while, she’s excited about dusting off her skills in her role as Mother.
“I haven’t done a whole lot of acting, as of late. I have been focusing most of my attention on directing … I love directing, but I wanted to be on the other side of things,” Herring said.
Herring admits that playing a woman in a different, less modern time has pushed her to leave her own personal ideals at the door. The character still very much resonates with modern women, explaining, “[Mother] is earnest. She loves her husband; she loves her kids. She just wants what’s best for them, but still holds them to a standard and so it’s all very pure and on the surface.”

James Dean- “The Old Man”
A Gilbert Theater veteran, Dean graced its stage for the first time in 1998. A holiday production regular, Dean is most Gilbert famous for his iconic role as Scrooge. Stepping into the role of the Old Man, is a slight and fun deviation from his normal character.
“I’ve done about over 70 plays in my life. I started acting in 1975, so there I am, playing the Old Man. And he’s not called the Old Man because he’s old, ok? He’s called the Old Man because he’s the old man. The Old Man of the family. I’m looking forward to playing with this role. It’s a lot of fun already. He gets chased by dogs and it is pretty funny stuff. I’m getting into it already. It’s just overplaying everything and having a good time,” Dean said.

Denny Orr- “Ralph”
Taking on what could be seen as the most integral role of the production, Ralph, the narrator, is Denny Orr.
“This is my first production at the Gilbert. I’m really enjoying it so far. [I’m coming] from the other side of the world, over there in Southern Pines where I’ve played for just a few shows. [I] caught the bug again about 2 years ago, before that was high school, so this has been a little bit of a journey.
"And what a journey it is. I’m playing Ralph, the narrator, and the fun part of this is this is my memory, dream scenario, everybody plays on the stage, and no one can see me and I interact with all of them, so it’s a hoot. It’s a lot of fun: narrating and speaking to the audience about what is about to happen, what has happened and just playing with the entire scene. I’m really really enjoying it and I’m really looking forward to it all coming together,” Orr said.

CJ Savoy- “Ralphie”
Playing one of the many kid roles is CJ Savoy, an up-and-coming actor who is just getting started with the Gilbert.
“This is maybe my fifteenth show ever and it’s my third show at the Gilbert. My first show was actually last season. I was in Assassins. I was the little boy,” Savoy said. With A Christmas Story releasing over 4 decades ago, Savoy, like many of the kid actors, had to watch the movie for the first time when they were cast. Savoy, who was not the biggest fan, said, “I watched it a day before the first rehearsal. I’m going to be honest… kind of mid.”
But watching a movie and starring in a play production are two totally different things, and Savoy has enjoyed stepping into the role of young Ralphie.
“It’s my first lead ever that’s not at school, and that’s really fun for me, [Because] I just get to do a lot more stuff [than] I have been. I like being busy and also, it’s way easier than I thought it was going to be because Denny has most of the lines. Most of my lines are one to five words. That’s nice,” Savoy said.

Oliver Benander- “Ralphie”
Oliver Benander is another up-and-coming actor on the Gilbert stage. “This is the fourth main stage show. My first play, really. My first main stage play, and I don’t know how many shows I’ve done,” Benander said. While Benander may agree with Savoy on the ease of this production, he does have a different take on the movie, saying, “I think my favorite part of this, I expected it to be, like CJ said, harder. And I used to watch A Christmas Story, the movie, every Christmas, but I kinda like slowly stopped. But I’ve seen the full movie. I think it’s pretty good.”

Sylvia Dean- “Randy”
Stepping into the role of Ralphie’s little brother, is Sylvia Dean. No stranger to the main stage or the Gilbert, Dean is bringing all the fun in her role.
“This is my third main stage at the Gilbert and the Gilbert is the only main stage I’ve done. I’ve done a couple at school and a couple at CFRT summer camps. I’m playing as Randy. I’m really enjoying this role. I love the character. And also not a lot of lines I have to memorize,” Dean said.
Much like her counterpart, Dean was very familiar with A Christmas Story before she was cast saying, “It’s awesome. And I really like the cast. They’re all great too. My dad has us watch it every year. Every single year. I like it a lot. I think it’s really funny and a good Christmas story.”

The stage production has been an utter delight for the cast and Matt Lamb, Producing Second Stage and Education Director. Lamb is making his directorial debut with this production. “I’ve done a lot of shows here but I’ve never directed a show. I did direct some of the GLEE shows. This is my very first main stage, Gilbert show,” Lamb said. Because A Christmas Story is such an iconic movie, Lamb and the cast know that there is an expectation when fans walk through the doors. Lamb explained, “My job is to help the actors tell the story that everyone knows. Everyone knows this story and if you don’t this is a gateway into the film. This is based off the film. So, a lot, 99 percent of what is in that film is in this script, with a few little extra things they put in there for the stage version. Those who know it will be able to almost recite everything. They know it’s coming.”
While taking in the show, attendees can also give back during the season of giving. The Gilbert Theater is partnering with a local nonprofit to provide food and toys for area families in need.
“The Gilbert Theater along with Second Stage and our new charity will be partnering with Second Harvest Food Bank to collect non perishable food items and toys during our holiday show. And they will be donated at the end of the showing,” Lamb said.
This production is set to be a fun, nostalgic and timeless classic, from the enthusiastic cast to the talented director, A Christmas Story will be sure to delight family members of all ages.

(Graphic courtesy of Gilbert Theater's Facebook page)