Saturday the 5th was “my” day, but it was not too exciting for most of it. We did start off well, by using up the last of a Bob Evans gift card to get breakfast at the restaurant. Then, we spent hours (and I do mean hours) running errands. Happily, we were able to run them together, and it was companionable. Plus, I was getting new glasses, and I did not dare to pick out my own glasses without Mer’s input. She (with the help of two store clerks) convinced me to get frames from the “go bold” collection. They look like updated hornrims from the 50s, and Mer helped cement the deal by saying they looked like the glasses David Tennant wears as The Doctor in Doctor Who.

A friend of mine had given me spare tickets he had to go see Weathervane Theater’s production Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. I had a little money around, but not a lot of time, so Mer and I settled on splitting a sub at Subway, and then trying the ice cream at an ice cream parlor/laundromat called McMoo’s. It was especially funny to be getting ice cream since it was a very cold night out, but dessert is dessert. The ice cream was okay, not great, and we had to rush it because we were cutting the time too close to the start of the play.

Weathervane is a comuntiy theater, which means that most of the actors are amateurs. Still, I have found their productions to be well done, and they have been around for a long time, having started in 1935. It is interesting to me that I keep managing to see variations on A Christmas Carol, a novel/play/movie powerhouse that I have long since grown tired of. Last year, Shannon and Jo took us to see the story from the viewpoint of Marley, Scrooge’s partner, and it was a well-done show. Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge looked closely at Bob Cratchit’s family, especially his wife. The play was meant to be a good-humored look at the familiar story, and threw in many contemporary references to Enron and to It’s a Wonderful Life. As a play, it was smile-worthy, with a few heart-felt laughs along the way. It dragged a touch in the second half as some of the first-act jokes were re-hashed, but it held together okay on the whole.

The acting was fine across the cast. The actor playing Bob Cratchit was excellent – he shone every time he was on stage. He had very good stage presence, and was easy to hear and delivered his lines with ease.

There was no set to speak of – the play took place in front of the main curtain. The main stage was set for the teen production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, so this play made do with a very sparse set. It worked just fine.

I think I would have liked to see the play head even more toward farce or satire. It could not quite make up its mind where it was going to land – a tongue-in-cheek play, a satire, or a farce. I think it could have been much fun if the author had pulled out all the stops and let the play romp. Still, it was an entertaining production, especially as a gift from a friend!