Christmas in Connecticut at PTC

Last night I saw the musical Christmas in Connecticut at PTC and I really enjoyed it. Most theatre companies near me produce A Christmas Carol, Elf The Musical, A Christmas Story, or White Christmas this time of year and, while I love these shows (I will be seeing them all this holiday season), it was refreshing to see something new and different. Liz Sandor (Alyse Alan Louis) is a young and independent writer living in NYC while trying to find a publisher for her column about tomorrow's woman. However, when she meets with Dudley Beecham (RJ Vaillancourt), an editor from Yardley Publishing, she is persuaded to write a column about living on a farm in Connecticut as a traditional wife and mother using the pen name Liz Lane even though it is a lie. The column becomes popular with housewives all over the country as well as with servicemen fighting in World War II because it reminds them of the homes they left behind. When Alexander Yardley (Gerry McIntyre) receives a fan letter from Jefferson Jones (Christian Magby), a war hero who has nowhere to go for Christmas, he decides to invite him to the farm. To avoid being exposed as a fraud, Dudley coerces his brother Victor (Eric William Morris) into letting them use his Connecticut farm and into pretending to be married to Liz. Chaos ensues when Victor and Liz take an immediate dislike to each other and when Yardley's suspicious secretary Gladys Higgenbottom (Tiffany Denise Hobbs) arrives determined to discover the truth. The story is as light and predictable as a Hallmark Christmas movie but it is definitely a lot of fun. It features memorable original songs and I especially enjoyed "Capital Idea" because Yardley is hilariously oblivious about the deception going on in his company, "The Ornament Song" because, even though it is really silly, it represents the chaos of trying to keep up the ruse (with fantastic choreography), "Remember What's At Stake" because Victor and Liz declare how much they hate each other (which obviously means that they will eventually get together), and "Recipe for Success" because Liz learns that it is always best to be your authentic self. The performances are delightful and I particularly enjoyed Louis because she has a beautiful voice and can belt out a song and I really appreciated the comedic timing of the entire cast as the hijinks get going. As always, the set is amazing, especially the two-story wood-paneled farmhouse decorated for Christmas, and the period costumes are distinctive.  There were a lot of empty seats last night which is a shame because this show is charming as well as something new this holiday season. It runs at PTC through December 16 (go here for tickets).