ENTERTAINMENT

‘Something Merry This Way Comes’ in Madison

BILL NUTT
CORRESPONDENT

After a couple of years of being “Wicked,” Brian D. Crowe is happy to make “Merry.”

Crowe is preparing to direct “Something Merry This Way Comes” at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey in Madison. The annual evening of seasonal readings and music will be held this Monday, Dec. 14.

Though Crowe has never helmed “Something Merry” at the theater, he has directed the companion piece, “Something Wicked This Way Comes,” which is staged (no surprise) in late October.

Crowe says he is looking forward to the December production for a number of reasons. “With ‘Something Wicked,’ you have to emphasize the eeriness of the writing. With ‘Something Merry,’ you have stories that leave you feeling light and happy.”

In addition, the audiences for the two works are different, Crowe says. Though “Something Wicked” is not explicit or gory, the subject matter of some of the writings makes it more appropriate for teen and adult audiences only.

In contrast, Crowe sees “Something Merry” as all-ages-friendly in the best possible way. “We want to make this year’s (edition) fun for the entire family,” he says.

“In the past, we’ve had some readings that might mix a little melancholy with the merry,” Crowe says. “This year, we’re trying to be truly merry.”

The evening will consist of more than a half-dozen actors and actresses taking turns on the stage. They will read stories and poems that relate to Christmas or the winter season in general, sprinkled with a smattering of appropriate songs.

Crowe observes that, in his experience, actors enjoy the opportunity to deliver readings in the “Something Merry” production, as a change from “acting” the pieces.

“It requires a different set of muscles,” says Crowe. “Actors usually focus on their own characters as being part of a greater scope. But this allows them to take on everything – the world, all the characters, the textures the drama.”

“The actors love it,” Crowe adds. “We in theater always like to tell stories, and this is pure storytelling.”

Both the “Something Wicked” and “Something Merry” productions put the focus on writing, Crowe says. “They concentrate on language and let that be the guiding force. There’s not a lot of staging, so it’s all about the tone.”

As for which stories will be presented in the 2015 edition of “Something Merry,” Crowe prefers to remain silent. “We want them to be a surprise,” he says.

Crowe did allow that the pieces represent the work of several authors, some whose names will be familiar to many of the attendees.

“These are classic writers, but they may not be known for writing Christmas stories,” Crowe says. “I’m consistently surprised at how many writers fit into the category.

Crowe stresses that one of the pleasures of “Something Merry” is that sense of discovery. He says that some of the better-known holiday stories – such as “A Christmas Carol” or “The Gift of the Magi” - will not be represented.

“We’ve done those in the past,” Crowe says. “We may have a small piece by Dickens.”

As for the writer who lends his name to the theater, Shakespeare will not be a major presence in “Something Merry.” Crowe points out that the only reference to Christmas in the Bard’s work is a very brief passage in “Hamlet.”

“We’ll have some Shakespeare that addresses the spirit of the season,” Crowe says. “For instance, ‘A Winter’s Tale’ addresses the cold weather but also the sense of being reborn, and the days starting to get longer.”

“Our holiday presentations tend to be a bit more secular,” Crowe says. “But it’s hard to avoid the sacred, either directly or indirectly. There’s almost always some echo of the themes of the Christmas tale.”

SOMETHING MERRY

THIS WAY COMES

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Monday

WHERE: F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Ave., Madison

TICKETS: $38

INFO: 973-408-5600 or

www.ShakespeareNJ.org