by Mike Hoban
It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play – Adapted by Joe Landry; Directed by Damon Kiely; Music Direction by Emily Turtle; Set Design by Michael McGarty; Costume Design by Jessie Darrell Jarbadan; Lighting Design by Noah Beauregard. Presented by The Gamm Theatre, 1245 Jefferson Blvd., Warwick, RI. Through December 24th, 2021
When I was a younger man, I watched It’s a Wonderful Life on PBS for the first time with my brother, long before it became a Christmastime staple. As the credits rolled, we sat motionless on either end of the couch, trying to hide our tears from one another, without success. It was a powerful experience, and one that was recreated multiple times during the holiday season for me and millions of others through the years. So the idea that that type of magic could be reproduced on stage – in the form of a radio play no less – seemed implausible at best. But miracle of miracles, the production of It’s a Wonderful Life:A Live Radio Play, now playing at The Gamm Theatre in Warwick, RI, delivers the same deeply gratifying sensation as the original movie, largely on the strength of the almost campy performances by its stellar cast, who embrace their radio star personas with wild exuberance.
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