SantaLand Diaries begins the holidays with good cheer
The holidays are my favorite time of year. I have this internal craving for all things red, green, white, and glittery. Which means I take full advantage of anything holiday-centric. And one of those events this year was SantaLand Diaries at Horizon Theatre Company. Running at Horizon for 15-years now, SantaLand Diaries, written by the humor king David Sedaris, is definitely for the adult holiday lovers like myself. Filled with dirty jokes ranging from race relations and sex, and contemporary references thrown into the mix, you won’t be able to deny the lovely, laugh induced smile that you leave the theatre with.
The play is based off of one of Sedaris’ essays that chronicled his time working as a department store elf. Narrated by Crumpet (Harold M. Leaver), Sedaris’ chosen elf name, the story goes from denial of the actual need and want of being santa’s little helper to the acceptance of the true meaning of Christmas… well, sort of. It’s a mixture of Elf and Bad Santa. SantaLand pushes the limits with good intentions and shows us all of our upcoming shopping nightmares, like horrible parents, long lines, and not so cheery helpers.
It is clear why Leaver has been playing Crumpet for all of the 15 years that it has been at Horizon. He is not only comfortable in this role after spending each Christmas season in it, but, like the other cast members, an incredibly flexible improviser. The little vignettes that break up the ongoing monologue-like narration are part scripted, and the other part clearly on the fly. The hilarious and incredibly versatile Lala Cochran ran the gamut of characters in these moments throughout the show including a small Asian child and Miley Cyrus, pre and post “adulthood.” And the very Keenan-esque Enoch King filled the room with his enthusiasm, back stage outbursts, and humorous expressions. Both “sidekicks” outdid themselves when it comes to adding to the hilarity and silliness. But the most memorable moment of the show was Fabian. While not planned, and definitely not to be duplicated, the French man, Fabian, that was plucked from the audience opening night to take part in a few of Crumpet’s antics was a show stealer. Him and his “slut” wife were constantly add libbed into the production or just winked at randomly.
Horizon Theatre is running SantaLand Diaries until Dec. 31, and though you won’t get Fabian, you will get Crumpet and his sidekicks running amuck through a department store, wearing crazy costumes, and poking fun at a lot of current conversation topics. Essentially it is filled with cheer, lots and lots and cheer.
