Judd Farris as George Bailey Credit: Courtesy of Kimberley Mead

It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play

Friar Tuck’s Pantry, 204 E. Main St., Round Rock, 850-4849
www.penfoldtheatre.org
Through Dec. 17
Running time: 1 hr., 45 min.

The holidays are in full swing again, bursting with last-minute shopping, countless ugly sweater parties, and my favorite: peppermint ice cream. But after the hubbub has died down and the stockings are finally hung by the chimney with care, we need a warm, fuzzy holiday story to remind us what the season’s really about. This year, Penfold Theatre Company brings Frank Capra’s classic 1946 film It’s a Wonderful Life to the stage in its truly wonderful production of Joe Landry’s live radio play adaptation, mounted in the cozy salon of Friar Tuck’s Pantry in Round Rock’s historic district.

Though director Nathan Jerkins writes that the Capra film “is a holiday tradition for most of us,” I must admit that selfless George Bailey, tyrannical Mr. Potter, and earnest angel Clarence are unfamiliar to me. Yep, that’s right, before Friday, I had never seen It’s a Wonderful Life. Penfold’s compelling, no-frills production was a fine crash course in the classic; I was touched. I even shed a few tears at the end as George ran frantically through the streets of Bedford Falls toward his beloved family and home, finding a large crowd of townspeople who cheerfully lent him the funds to cover the accidental deficit of his enduring savings and loan.

Actually, Judd Farris, who plays George with delightful ebullience, hardly moves at all as he sprints through the small, snowy town to his wife, Mary (pouting ingenue Eden Blattner). Penfold’s production is exactly what it sounds like: a live radio show for which the theatre audience becomes a live studio audience prompted by a glowing “applause” sign. The five skilled cast members are television-loathing radio performers at a fictional station who perform with scripts in hand in front of three old-fashioned silver microphones and a 9-foot Christmas tree. Dressed in polished midcentury garb by Glenda Barnes, they use scenic/props/lighting designer George Marsolek’s mountain of props to make live sound effects, though it is unclear whether the radio show subplot is set in 2011 or in the late Forties. But once Capra’s feel-good tale gets rolling, it is pure joy to watch real-life Texas Radio Hall of Famer David R. Jarrott, petite Claire Ludwig, and Austin newcomer Alan Blyton manipulate their voices into scores of different characters. The production suffered only from a dragging introduction and a lack of stadium seating, which diminished audience sight lines. But overall, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play is a charming complement to the holiday hustle and bustle for the whole family. It’s worth the drive to Round Rock to hear Clarence help us change our perspective as he gushes, “See, George, you really had a wonderful life!”

This article appears in December 16 • 2011.

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