On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me the ONU Holiday Spectacular. From November 20 to 23, Ohio Northern University’s Freed Center for the Performing Arts offered the annual ONU Holiday Spectacular for the campus community. It is a tradition everyone looks forward to each school year.
This year, the show was even more amazing and magical as Ohio Northern University’s grandest tradition celebrated its twentieth anniversary.
The show was sold out weeks before its opening night, and the cast and crew was very excited that the Ada community looks forward to holiday tradition each year.
Among the most excited was director Kirsten Osbun Manley. For over seven years, Manley has been directing the show and has enjoyed it more and more each year.
“One of the most wonderful things about this produc- tion is that it’s not just about the ONU students, but the community at large,” says Manley. “People who have never seen a musical come to this show. It’s a family tradition.”
For the 2014 ONU Holiday Spectacular, the tradition audience members expected to see were delivered by the cast and crew.
“The show contains the familiar traditional Christmas music. There are ballerinas, Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus, Pixel the Elf, Mrs. Claus, the toy soldiers, and of course, the nativity scene that is always very popular with our audience. We never take out those parts because that’s what everyone wants to see,” Manley explains.
This year, there was a new Pixel, everyone’s favorite holiday elf. Freshman musical theatre major Meredith Bergwall reflects on her first leading role at Ohio Northern University.
“I’ve had so much fun with this show. It’s such an honor to play Pixel. I have big shoes to fill, but I just have to put on the costume and know that there have been so many other people in my position before. I just have to be Pixel” said Bergwall.
Another student with a different look at the show is senior Chase Zimmerman. Chase is unique to the Department of Theatre Arts because he is a computer science major, not a theatre student. This doesn’t stop him from being in the holiday spirit with the ONU Holiday Spectacular.
“I love performing in this show, mainly to see the kids’ reactions. I’m not one of the central characters who gets to do all of the crazy tricks, but getting to see the kids’ reactions to the fancy tricks is the best thing for me. Since this is just a hobby of mine, it’s nice to have fun with the show and experience it as a non-theatre major.”
With thoughts like that, the ONU Holiday Spectacular will certainly continue to entertain audience members for another twenty years at Ohio Northern University.