"The First Christmas" is a nice combination production of the Christmas story. The combo is in the form of a modern home setting with parents and a daughter, and a staged musical setting of adults giving the Bible account of the birth of Jesus. The parents have decided that they want to give the presents they bought for the family this year to another needy family with six children. The dad warms up the daughter, Amelia (played by Lauren Faber) to the idea by telling her the story of the first Christmas.
The scene switches to shepherds in the field and moves into their singing the story. Angels appear to them, singing, and the group together arrive at the stable near Bethlehem. The scenes switch back and forth between the Bible story and the bedroom of Amelia where her dad is telling her the story. At the end, she goes with her dad to deliver their wrapped Christmas presents to the needy family. They leave them outside the door and sneak away.
It's a nice tale that relates the traditional meaning of Christmas and the giving and sharing of the feast. The casting and family characters are not clearly defined here. Faber is very good as Amelia, but Frank Gerrish who plays George (I presume her father) is wooden. Sure, these actors are not related, but to portray the story well, they should be able to show some family bonding. It's noticeably absent from George and Amelia.
The songs are mostly modern lyrics, with a couple of traditional carols worked in. They are just OK. No one stands out with a dynamic singing voice. The ending is good and Amelia seems to get real joy out of giving away the special doll she had wanted. She delights when a little girl in the window catches a glimpse of them delivering the presents and says, "Oh, look! I saw an angel."
The scene switches to shepherds in the field and moves into their singing the story. Angels appear to them, singing, and the group together arrive at the stable near Bethlehem. The scenes switch back and forth between the Bible story and the bedroom of Amelia where her dad is telling her the story. At the end, she goes with her dad to deliver their wrapped Christmas presents to the needy family. They leave them outside the door and sneak away.
It's a nice tale that relates the traditional meaning of Christmas and the giving and sharing of the feast. The casting and family characters are not clearly defined here. Faber is very good as Amelia, but Frank Gerrish who plays George (I presume her father) is wooden. Sure, these actors are not related, but to portray the story well, they should be able to show some family bonding. It's noticeably absent from George and Amelia.
The songs are mostly modern lyrics, with a couple of traditional carols worked in. They are just OK. No one stands out with a dynamic singing voice. The ending is good and Amelia seems to get real joy out of giving away the special doll she had wanted. She delights when a little girl in the window catches a glimpse of them delivering the presents and says, "Oh, look! I saw an angel."
