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Theatre Bristol to perform "Miracle on 34th Street" — audition and show dates announced

September 30, 2013

Theatre Bristol will bring a “Miracle” to Historic Downtown Bristol this holiday season, a “Miracle on 34th Street”. The holiday family favorite will open Thanksgiving weekend, beginning Friday, November 29th and run through December 15th. (Weekend one; Nov. 29, 30, Dec. 1. Weekend two; Dec. 6, 7, 8. Weekend three; Dec. 13, 14, 15). Show times are 8:00 pm for Friday & Saturday evening performances and 2:00 pm for the Sunday matinees. Directing the cast of over 25 will be regionally respected director and longtime Theatre Bristol collaborator Glen Patterson. Auditions are set for Sunday, October 6th at 3:00 pm and Monday, October 7th at 7:00 pm. They will be held at Theatre Bristol, 506 State Street, Bristol, TN. The cast includes principal roles for a young girl (age 7 and up), 2 women, 3 men and 14 supporting roles for men or women and many extras including children (age 6 and up). All experience levels are encouraged to audition. No previous acting experience is necessary. No prepared material is needed. Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Rehearsals will begin the week of October 13. For more information see the Theatre Bristol website, www.theatrebristol.org, Theatre Bristol Facebook page, email info@theatrebristol.org, or call Theatre Bristol’s information line at 423-383-5979.

"“Miracle on 34th Street” is a tale that we want to believe in, that creates a world we seem to desperately desire, free of the blatant commercialism that surrounds us, where love and decency and generosity of spirit are their own rewards. What we want Christmas to be all about, really." So writes the Santa Cruz Sentinel of this most heartwarming holiday story. By chance, Kris Kringle, an old man in a retirement home, gets a job working as Santa for Macy's. Kris unleashes waves of good will with Macy's customers and the commercial world of New York City by referring parents to other stores to find exactly the toy their child has asked for. Seen as deluded and dangerous by Macy's vocational counselor, who plots to have Kris shanghaied to Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital, Kris ends up in a court competency hearing. Especially at stake is one little girl's belief in Santa. In a dramatic decision, the court confirms Kris as the true Santa, allowing Susan and countless other children to experience the joy of childhood fantasy.

The classic holiday story was first brought to the silver screen by Twentieth Century Fox in 1947 from the story by Valentine Davies, and starred a young Natalie Wood as Susan Walker, Maureen O’Hara as her mother Doris and Edmund Gwenn as Kris Kringle. The 1994 remake starred Dylan McDermott, Elizabeth Perkins and Sir Richard Attenborough. Theatre Bristol will be performing the stage version that is based on the classic and adapted by Mountain Community Theatre.