A Nice Family Christmas
Review by Ernest Goes To Theatre/Ernest Edwards
I was at opening night of A Nice Family Christmas at Lyric Arts.
This was such a fun evening. I laughed a lot!
A Nice Family Christmas is a play that was written by Phil Olson, and was published in 2017. I had never heard of this play. Always nice to see something that you know nothing about. The story takes place in the Twin Cities. That was a nice touch. Watching a show about the Twin Cities, in the northern suburb or Anoka was pefect.
This play is delicious. It has a lot of bite. Definitely something to sink your teeth into. It is definitely a dysfunctional family Christmas play. I loved every minute of it. The humor, situations, characters, antics and zingers are not to be missed.
It’s Christmas Eve at Mom’s (Lori Constable) condo. Carl (Patrick Kozicky) writes for the Star Tribune, is the middle child, and is the first to arrive. We quickly learn he is not the favorite. Grandma (Kathleen Winters) is also there, from Florida. Mom didn’t know she would be here for Christmas either. Surprise! Michael (Sam Sweere) arrives. He’s who everyone has been waiting for. The oldest child. The Doctor. The one who has his act together. Next to arrive is the third/youngest child Stacia (Lyreshia Ghostlon-Green). Unexpectedly Uncle Bob (Anthony Zadra) shows up. He tells Mom that she did say he could stop by at any time after her husband’s funeral, as she points out that was three years ago. Later, near the end of the first act Jill (Waverly Ann McCollumn), Michael’s wife will arrive.
Carl is tasked by his editor to write about his family’s Christmas Eve dinner together. He has his laptop and pad & pen ready to write down the series of unfortunate events that occur at this family holiday dinner party.
Everybody has skeletons in their closet. We learn Stacia is engaged to her lesbian partner and recently gave birth to a baby. That garnered a reaction from Grandma. Grandma at the moment is waiting for the next batch of retirees to arrive in Florida. It sounds like she channeled Blanche Devereaux while in Florida. Carl and his girlfriend Rita have broken up. Michael went to rehab, twice! Micheal and Jill have been separated for three months. Uncle Bob likes to drink, behave inappropriately, and eat beef jerky.
Will Carl and Rita get back together? Will Michael and Jill reconcile? Will Michael and Jill have children? Will Uncle Bob make amends with his kids and see his grandkids? What secret is Mom hiding? All is revealed in a Christmas game Mom created to see who can be the most good on Christmas Eve. Sometimes it feels like who can jab each other with a lifetime of issues is winning. This is a dark comedy after all. Wrapped festively around Christmas Eve.
This show kept me engaged from beginning to end. So many great moments. Great comedic actors with amazing timing. And their facial expressions. The cliff hanger at the end of first the Act. Now that was a moment!
This is not your traditional Christmas play. This play is definitely Christmas in every way. Get out to the Main Street Stage in downtown Anoka and see A Nice Family Christmas. Play runs through December 21, 2025. Check out www.lyricarts.org for tickets.
