Sleigh Ride | The Sleepless Critic

REVIEW: With a mix of joy, reflection, and sweet surprises, The Holiday Pops’ milestone 50th year continues to make the season bright

Posted on December 22, 2023 by The Sleepless Critic

From hymnal to classical to Santa to the Grinch, The Holiday Pops offers something for everyone and makes it easy to alleviate the stress of the season and happily embrace what truly matters.

Celebrating a milestone 50^th year and the welcome return of the all-volunteer Tanglewood Festival Chorus, The Holidays Pops delivers a tapestry of classical and beloved Christmas carols, spiritual hymns, as well as holiday traditions through art and illustrations which always includes an annual visit from a surprisingly innovative and always jolly Santa Claus. Boston Pops conductor and host, Keith Lockhart garners warmth and reflective holiday cheer weaving in a certain classic Grinch quote by Dr. Seuss, a highly anticipated sing-along, and maybe even a dancing Maestro.

12.1.23 Keith Lockhart conducts Holiday Pops 2023 (Hilary Scott)

Sponsored by Fidelity Investments, led by Keith Lockhart, and ideal for the whole family, The Holiday Pops continues at Boston Symphony Hall through Christmas Eve. The show runs two hours including an intermission. Click here for more information and tickets.

Elegantly adorning the intrinsically-detailed gold balconies with twinkling lights on thick, festive wreaths is just a sampling of the stunning surroundings inside Symphony Hall. The stage spontaneously comes to life from illuminated gifts to lighted Christmas trees to glimmering dancing snowflakes.

12.1.23 Baritone Andrew Garland performs Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Christmas Carols with the Holiday Pops (Hilary Scott)

This beautiful performance delivered equal doses of contemplative material and lightheartedness with the first half fanciful and spiritual. Among the many highlights, Baritone Andrew Garland grandly delivered an eloquent and soaring rendition of Fantasia on Christmas Carols by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

12.1.23 12 Days of Christmas with the Tanglewood Festival Chorus (Hilary Scott)

With a generation bombarded with CGI and AI, The Holiday Pops thrilled audiences with author Jan Brett’s colorful, authentic and imaginative illustrations. Accompanied by seamless orchestration by the Boston Pops, the audience absorbed themselves in a Jan Brett children’s book that offers a rich new vision of Tchaikovsky’s classic, The Nutcracker. Among the memorable images was a fire breathing dragon, reindeers that have antlers with lighted candlesticks, dancing bears, and Santa in a headstand wearing a bucket hat.

12.1.23 Tribute to Harry Belafonte at Holiday Pops (Hilary Scott)

The evening also contained a moving tribute to EGOT Winner, activist, and musician Harry Belafonte not only honoring Belafonte’s calypso-inspired classic tunes, but his impressive activism featuring various pictures and video of his part in the March on Washington, supporting Martin Luther King Jr, and his work with UNICEF.

The Pops delivered a captivating gospel tribute in Swahili called The Good News Voyage arranged by David Coleman which contained Go Tell it on the Mountain. In the second half of the show, The Holidays Pops presented a Jewish song sung in Hebrew, Tikkun Olan (Heal the World), a riveting rendition expressing the yearning and urgency to heal and repair the world ‘Pray for peace and justice/For the sake of peace/heal the world’ as the tempo accelerated into a powerful crescendo.

12.1.23 Santa Claus with Keith Lockhart (Hilary Scott)

Brimming with beloved classic Christmas carols and guest appearances by Santa and more, the second half of Holiday Pops was a vibrant, yuletide spectacle joyfully kicking off with Sebesky’s Frosty All the Way, a jazz-infused medley featuring Jingle Bells, Frosty the Snowman and more. The brass ensemble spinning their instruments was among the playful sights as they performed this catchy and airy collection of carols.

12 Days of Christmas

Boston Pops’ charming signature versions of Sleigh Ride are always clever, cheeky, and increasingly full of madcap high jinks and the 12 Days of Christmas show that anything can happen among illuminated dancing snowflakes. The Holiday Pops also presented a special annual reading of Clement Clarke Moore’s Twas the Night before Christmas, read briskly by enthusiastic special guest WBZ News journalist Matt Shearer to mark its publication nearly 200 years ago before Santa arrived. While bulbs glow to the beat, the jolly Tanglewood Festival Chorus delivered A Merry Little Singalong in Santa hats and ears which included Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Walking in a Winter Wonderland, and more.

Holiday Pops concluded with the tender Let There Be Peace on Earth, as Earth shone overhead, brilliantly conveying the quiet hope for the coming New Year.

REVIEW: Whimsical and festive, Celebrity Series of Boston at Home extends the holiday season with Jason Palmer Quintet’s distinct and upbeat free digital concert

Posted on January 16, 2022 by The Sleepless Critic

We all just wanted the holiday season to last just a bit longer.

With the uncertainty and bitter temperatures in this New Year just weeks into 2022, it is difficult to part from the bustling excitement of last year’s holiday season. Musicals, plays, concerts, and more burst onto the stage cautiously but assuredly to deliver holiday cheer, some escapism, and to offer new and hopeful insight into what we have all been going through.

Trumpeter Jason Palmer, tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger, pianist Kevin Harris, bassist Max Ridley and drummer Lee Fish continues digital stream for two more months. Photo courtesy of Celebrity Series of Boston

In December, The Jason Palmer Quintet lit up the Arlington Street Church in Boston live and in person amid festively adorned green and gold wreaths while sharing some new music twists to a few beloved Christmas carols. Don’t expect to hear these traditional Christmas carols without some clever and spirited flair.

Celebrity Series of Boston at Home is extending the spirit of the season with their free pre-recorded digital concert, part of the Neighborhood Arts, Jazz and Contemporary Music Series, The Jason Palmer Quintet. This warmhearted concert is accessible for two more months and runs under 90 minutes with no intermission. Click here for more information and additional selections from Jason Palmer and his quintet.

Trumpeter Jason Palmer, tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger, bassist Max Ridley and drummer Lee Fish Photo courtesy of Celebrity Series of Boston

Infusing music dynamos Duke Ellington and brothers Elvin and Thad Jones into eloquent compositions, The Jason Palmer Quintet arranges what trumpeter Jason Palmer affectionately calls ‘derangements.’ These derangements weave unique and lighthearted spins into traditional carols while each performer has their own chance to shine.

Bassist Max Ridley and drummer Lee Fish caught on camera! Photo courtesy of Celebrity Series of Boston

Some of the concert highlights include an extended and impressive trumpet solo to open the show in the smooth and mid-tempo Sunset and Mockingbird/Christmas Song and Lee Fish’s playful drum solo during Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer as the drum beat imitates hooves on a rooftop. It’s a sweeping, quiet build to Rudolph’s catchy chorus. Trumpeter Jason Palmer, tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger, pianist Kevin Harris, bassist Max Ridley and drummer Lee Fish are all so well in sync and it is fascinating to watch them pair off as the instruments ‘chat,’ jam, and gradually build before circling back to that familiar tune with an unexpected flair and flourish.

ChristmasTime is Here is an expressive, rumbling, and fast-paced imagining of Vince Guaraldi’s easygoing classic number. With more hustle, the musicians glide and veer into their own peaks and valleys highlighted by dynamic pianist Kevin Harris tickling the keys under a church sign that reads ‘To the Glory of God.’

Pianist Kevin Harris in action Photo courtesy of Celebrity Series of Boston

What is certain about this quintet is if the viewer listens carefully to their clever compositions, one may detect an extra carol or two within their potent rhythms. For example, stray lyrics to Sleigh Ride can be heard within an eclectic medley of Silver Bells/A Child is Born and Santa Claus in Coming to Town emerges from a rolling and upbeat Greensleeves medley. They certainly kept this enthusiastic audience on their toes.

Celebrity Series at Home is extending the mistletoe and holly with free digital concert, The Jason Palmer Quintet for two more months. Click here to view the concert, more information, and additional selections from Jason Palmer and his quintet.

REVIEW: Greater Boston Stage Company’s classic ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ delivers a gentle nudge of holiday cheer

Posted on December 18, 2019 by The Sleepless Critic

Miracle on 34^th Street is a simple tale with a big message.

During this time of year, faith is a predominant theme within many holiday productions such as faith in humanity, in God, and in a “right jolly old elf.” From Twas the Night Before Christmas to A Christmas Carol, the holiday spirit shines through, a temporary feeling that really should last all year long.

Directed with charm by Ilyse Robbins, based on the book by Valentine Davies, and adapted by Mountain Community Theatre, Greater Boston Stage Company’s Miracle on 34^th Street continues through Sunday, December 22 at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, Massachusetts. Click here for more information and tickets.

Set in New York City, Miracle on 34th Street is about a mysterious man who becomes a last minute replacement for Santa Claus at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. He befriends Susie Walker, a precocious little girl portrayed with grace and charm by Addison McWayne, who is far too sensible for childish things including believing in Santa Claus. Natalie Wood rose to fame in her role as Susie Walker with Maureen O’Hara as Doris Walker in the beloved 1947 film.

Jon Savage’s vibrant set design includes a lovely, towering, and whimsical Christmas tree that contributes its own unique part in the tale. The famous parade is just one of the events that take place in the aisles during this semi-immersive production.

Though this production of Miracle of 34^th Street is not considered a musical, it does have its share of musical moments. From gift wrapping to sweeping the store shelves, the store workers do more than whistle while they work, swaying and lifting their voices in a variety of spontaneous Christmas carols such as The 12 Days of Christmas, Sleigh Ride, and The Nutcracker Suite led by the mirthful vocal stylings of David Jiles Jr. as Mr. Adams.

Packed with a likeable cast of characters including a lively and noteworthy performance by Gary Thomas NG as Alfred, Miracle on 34th Street shows it is sometimes better to see with the heart rather than the head. Gary Thomas NG is captivating as Alfred, a humble and gleeful janitor full of holiday cheer. NG depicts Alfred with a song in his heart as he spontaneously leaps for joy across the stage. His comic scenes with William Gardiner as gentle, jovial and unfailingly forthright Kris Kringle are a particular highlight as they compete in board games and engage in candid conversations. With warm charisma and that signature twinkle, William Gardiner fills Kris Kringle’s red suspenders with finesse and of the many iconic conversations he has with McWayne’s Susie, their playful dialogue about imagination is just wonderful.

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In a red coat and distinctive 50s red lipstick, Sara Coombs portrays Doris Walker, an astute and shrewd businesswoman. It is amusing to watch Walker and her “mini-me” daughter Susie as they inadvertently duplicate each other’s mannerisms. Susie is seemingly as mature, confident, and shrewd as her elegant mother. Showing a great rapport with each cast member, Michael Jennings Mahoney is refreshing as fun loving and laid back Fred. Barlow Adamson exacts Macy store manager Mr. Shellhammer’s nervous and priceless tense expressions prevalent during the holiday season.

Having last seen Juliet Bowler in an affecting performance at Flat Earth Theatre’s Not Medea, it is no surprise that Bowler show off her talents as insecure, strict and secretive Leslie Sawyer. Her cold disdain and devious manipulations reach Grinch-like proportions. Sara Gazdowicz also takes an amusing turn as a fast talking, accent-rich NYC cop.

Greater Boston Stage Company Miracle on 34th Street Leslie, Kris, and cast

Juliet Bowler as Mrs. Sawyer, Barlow Adamson as Mr. Shellhammer, Sara Coombs as Doris Walker, and William Gardiner as Kris Kringle Photo courtesy of Nile Scott Studios/Greater Boston Stage Company

While some performances demonstrate holiday spirit in pomp and spectacle, Greater Boston Stage Company delivers that feeling with a gentle nudge of heartwarming cheer. Greater Boston Stage Company’s Miracle on 34^th Street through Sunday, December 22. Click here for more information and tickets. Click here to learn more about Greater Boston Stage Company and their upcoming 2020 productions.

REVIEW: Captivating and lighthearted, Boston’s annual Holiday Pops as festive as ever

Posted on December 19, 2018 by The Sleepless Critic

In its 23^rd year, The Holiday Pops are in full swing and as festive as ever! Illustration and illumination dominated this year’s performances woven into a wide spectrum of Christmas carols, spiritual hymns, and holiday traditions. Whether it’s the excitement of the all-volunteer Tanglewood Festival Chorus, the Boston Pops adding their own unique, personal flair, or their highly anticipated sing-along, The Holiday Pops makes it easy to alleviate the stress of the season and happily embrace what truly matters. Sponsored by Fidelity Investments and led by Keith Lockhart, The Holiday Pops at Boston Symphony Hall continues through Christmas Eve. Click here for more information and tickets.

Elegantly adorning the intrinsically-detailed gold balconies are twinkling lights on thick, festive wreaths, just a sampling of the stunning surroundings inside Symphony Hall. During the show, the stage spontaneously came to life with a variety of scenery illuminated above the stage from flickering candles to colorful, dancing snowflakes.

This beautiful performance of Holiday Pops delivered equal doses of reflective material and lightheartedness, the first half playful and spiritual. Leroy Anderson’s A Christmas Festival which included Deck the Halls, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, and Silent Night kicked off a memorable first half. The Boston Pops orchestra performed a harmonious and airy rendition of Parade of the Wooden Soldiers accompanied by a bright, festive short film created with original artwork and animation by FableVision Studios.

The Holidays Pops reflected on the revelation of Jesus during Shepherd’s Chorus as well as The Festival of Lights in an increasingly uplifting Songs of Freedom: A Celebration of Chanukah featuring detailed portraits illustrated by children’s book artist, Judith Clark. With stirring excerpts from O Little Town of Bethlehem, What Child is This, Go Tell it On the Mountain, and more, acclaimed baritone David McFerrin narrated The Christmas Story illustrated with Tomie dePaola’s original artwork.

Brimming with beloved classic Christmas carols and guest appearances by Santa and more, the second half of Holiday Pops was a vibrant, yuletide spectacle. While bulbs glowing to the beat, the jolly Tanglewood Festival Chorus delivered a string of Christmas waltzes, singalongs, and more including the annual reading of Clement Charke Moore’s Twas The Night Before Christmas, read enthusiastically by special guest, Boston journalist Janet Wu.

Boston’s charming signature versions of Sleigh Ride and the always clever and amusing 12 Days of Christmas were welcome additions to the mix as Santa Claus made his grand entrance. Holiday Pops concluded with Let There Be Peace on Earth, as Earth shone overhead, brilliantly conveyed the quiet hope for the coming New Year.

The Boston Pops presents the beloved holiday film, ‘Home Alone in Concert’ with live orchestra December 29 and 30. Photo credit to Twentieth Century Fox/Boston Pops

Before ringing in the New Year, The Boston Pops will offer special presentations of Christmas film favorite, Home Alone featuring the music of John Williams with live orchestra at Symphony Hall on December 29 and 30. The Boston Pops will cap off the year with their annual New Year’s Eve concert led by actor, animator, singer, and filmmaker, Seth McFarlane.

All performances take place at Boston Symphony Hall, 301 Massachusetts Ave in Boston, Massachusetts. Click here for more information and tickets, through SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200, and at the Symphony Hall Box Office, 301 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, Massachusetts. The Holiday Pops are also available at home with A Boston Pops Christmas: Live from Symphony Hall album through ITunes, Amazon, and Amazon MP3.

Holiday Pops makes annual return to Symphony Hall with sing-a-long carols, holiday cheer, and Santa Claus

Posted on November 30, 2017 by The Sleepless Critic

The spirit of the season comes knocking as the Holiday Pops make their way to Symphony Hall bringing sing-a-long carols and brimming with holiday cheer. For over 20 years, decking out Symphony Hall has become an annual Boston tradition, seeped in the luminous sights and sounds of the season and welcoming audiences from near and far. At the helm once again is renowned maestro Keith Lockhart to conduct Holiday Pops 2017 from Tuesday, December 5 and continuing through Christmas Eve. Cap off the year and return to Symphony Hall for a special New Year’s Eve Party featuring the Boston Pops led by returning bandleader Bo Winiker. Click here for more information and for tickets.

Keith Lockhart leads the Holiday Pops Photo courtesy of Stu Rosner/BSO

Holiday Pops features approximately 40 evening and matinee performances featuring an array of beloved carols, storytelling, and a traditional holiday sing-along. Morning kid matinees are also available which includes photos with Santa and much more. Children under 2 get in free. Kicking off on December 2, The Holiday Pops will also be on the road touring New England with Keith Lockhart and Santa in tow for The Boston Pops Holiday Tour. Click here for tour dates and locations.

Bring Holiday Pops home with the Boston Pops all-live CD. Savor the sounds of the season right in the living room with A Boston Pops Christmas: Live from Symphony Hall, virtually bringing the listener right through the Symphony Hall doors to enjoy a time-honored Christmas tradition for the entire family.

With Keith Lockhart leading the Boston Pops, A Boston Pops Christmas: Live from Symphony Hall features a gorgeous Christmas medley from American Idol finalist Melinda Doolittle along with audience favorites such as Dr. Seuss’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas, The Twelve Days of Christmas, Sleigh Ride, The Christmas Song, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and Merrily We Sing Along.

Photo courtesy of Bo Winiker

Click here for tickets, call SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200, and are also available at the Symphony Hall Box Office, 301 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, Massachusetts. A Boston Pops Christmas: Live from Symphony Hall CD is available through ITunes, Amazon, and Amazon MP3.