''A Christmas Story: The Musical'' is a stage musical with music and lyrics written by

Benj Pasek and Justin Paul Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, known together as Pasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films and television. While Pasek usually writes lyrics and Paul usually writes music, they share credit for ...

, and a book by Joseph Robinette. It is based on the 1983 film ''

A Christmas Story ''A Christmas Story'' is a 1983 Christmas comedy film directed by Bob Clark and based on the 1966 book '' In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash'' by Jean Shepherd, with some elements from his 1971 book ''Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories ...

'', itself based on the 1966 book '' In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash'' by

Jean Shepherd Jean Parker "Shep" Shepherd Jr. (July 26, 1921 – October 16, 1999) was an American storytelling, storyteller, humorist, radio and TV personality, writer, and actor. With a career that spanned decades, Shepherd is known for the film ''A Christm ...

. The musical takes place in the 1940s in Indiana and focuses on a child named Ralphie, who wants a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas. After numerous regional productions, out of town tryouts and national tours, this version of the musical originally officially opened on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

in November 2012 at the Lunt Fontanne Theatre for a limited engagement that ran through December.

Production history

The musical premiered at the

Kansas City Repertory Theatre Kansas City Repertory Theatre is a professional resident theater company serving the Kansas City metropolitan area, and is the professional theater-in-residence at the University of Missouri–Kansas City (UMKC). The theatre has had five artis ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, in December 2009. The music and lyrics for that version were written by Scott Davenport Richards; the musical was directed by Eric Rosen with the book by Joseph Robinette, and featured John Bolton as "The Old Man" and Anne L. Nathan as Mother. Zachary Sayle appeared as Ralphie Parker and Jake Siegfried as younger brother, Randy Parker. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul were hired to re-do the score after the Kansas City engagement. ''A

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

Story: The Musical'' opened at the

5th Avenue Theatre The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in the Skinner Building, in the downtown core of Seattle, Washington, United States. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building ...

, Seattle, Washington, on December 9, 2010, and ran through December 30. The director was Eric Rosen with choreography by Kelly Devine, and a cast that featured

John Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican Party (United States), Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to ...

and Anne Allgood as The Old Man and Mother. A national tour in 2011 followed, ending at the

Chicago Theatre The Chicago Theatre, originally known as the Balaban and Katz Chicago Theatre, is a landmark Theater (structure), theater located on North State Street (Chicago), State Street in the Loop, Chicago, Loop area of Chicago, Illinois. Built in 19 ...

New York City

The musical had a limited run in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

in 2012 and 2013. It opened on

at the

Lunt-Fontanne Theatre The Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, originally the Globe Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 205 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1910, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre was designed by C ...

on November 19, 2012 (after previews beginning November 7), and closed on December 30. The musical was directed by

John Rando John Rando is an American stage director who won the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for ''Urinetown the Musical'' in 2002. He received his 2nd nomination in the same category in 2015 for the 2014 Broadway revival of '' On the Town''. ...

with choreography by

Warren Carlyle Warren Carlyle is a British director and choreographer who was born in Norwich, Norfolk, England. He received Drama Desk Award nominations for Outstanding Choreography and Outstanding Director of a Musical for the 2009 revival of '' Finian's Rain ...

. The cast featured

Dan Lauria Daniel Joseph Lauria (born April 12, 1947) is an American actor, who played the role of Jack Arnold in ''The Wonder Years'' (1988–1993), Jack Sullivan on '' Sullivan and Son'' (2012–2014), and Al Luongo on '' Pitch'' (2016–2017). Early l ...

as Jean Shepherd, John Bolton as The Old Man, Caroline O'Connor as Miss Shields,

Erin Dilly Erin Dilly (born May 12, 1972) is an American actress. She is most noted for her portrayal of Truly Scrumptious in the 2005 musical ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'', for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actr ...

as Mother, Zac Ballard as Randy, and with Johnny Rabe and Joe West both alternating as lead character Ralphie, who had been played in the 1983 film by

Peter Billingsley Peter Billingsley (born April 16, 1971), also known as Peter Michaelsen and Peter Billingsley-Michaelsen, is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for portraying Ralphie Parker in ''A Christmas Story'' and ''A Christmas Story Christm ...

, one of the show's producers. The Broadway producers were Gerald Goehring, Roy Miller, Michael F. Mitri, Pat Flicker Addiss,

, Timothy Laczynski, Mariano Tolentino, Jr., Louise H. Beard, Michael Filerman, Scott Hart, Alison Eckert, Bob Bartner, Michael Jenkins, Angela Milonas and Bradford W. Smith. The production was represented by long-time Broadway press agency, Keith Sherman & Associates The production returned to New York for a limited engagement at

The Theater at Madison Square Garden The Theater at Madison Square Garden is a theater located in New York City's Madison Square Garden (MSG). It seats between 2,000 and 5,600 people and is used for concerts, shows, sports, meetings, and other events. It is situated beneath the main ...

that ran from December 11-29, 2013. The principals included Dan Lauria, John Bolton, Erin Dilly and Caroline O'Conner reprising their roles. The character of "Ralphie" was played by Jake Lucas with Eli Tokash at some performances. The role of 'Randy' was played by Noah Baird.

National tour

A seasonal national tour of the show has run yearly since 2014. Directed by Matt Lenz the tour is based on the original staging by John Rando with choreography by Warren Carlyle. Sets are by Michael Carnahan, lighting design by Charlie Morrison and costumes by Lisa Zinni. The 2019 tour began in November in Sacramento, California at the Memorial Auditorium. The tour production is again directed by Matt Lenz, staged by Michael Rader with Warren Carlyle's Broadway choreography reset for the tour by Brooke Martino. In the most recent 2021 national tour, Keegan Gulledge and Blake Burnham alternated in the role of Ralphie.

2017 television broadcast

Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, LLC (commonly known as Fox; stylized in all caps) is an Television in the United States, American commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast television broadcaster, television network serving as the flagship proper ...

aired a live television event based on the Broadway musical version titled ''A Christmas Story Live!'', with

Pasek and Paul Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, known together as Pasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films and television. While Pasek usually writes lyrics and Paul usually writes music, they share credit fo ...

composing several new songs for the live television musical. The live musical was televised on December 17, 2017, with the cast that starred

Maya Rudolph Maya Khabira Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress and comedian. In 2000, she became a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). During her tenure on the show, she appeared in supporting roles in ...

as Ralphie's mother,

Matthew Broderick Matthew Broderick (born March 21, 1962) is an American actor. He starred in ''WarGames'' (1983) as a teen government hacker, and ''Ladyhawke (film), Ladyhawke'' (1985), a medieval fantasy alongside Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer. He play ...

as The Narrator/Older Ralphie, 11-year-old Andy Walken as Ralphie,

Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (; ; born October 11, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She starred as Jenna Maroney in the NBC satirical comedy series ''30 Rock'' (2006–2013, 2020), for which she received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Out ...

as Miss Shields,

Chris Diamantopoulos Christopher Diamantopoulos ( (''Khristóforos Diamantópoulos''); born May 9, 1975) is a Canadian actor. He played Russ Hanneman in the HBO series ''Silicon Valley'' and starred in the film ''The Three Stooges'' as Moe Howard, and the TV series ...

as Ralphie's father, and

Ana Gasteyer Ana Kristina Gasteyer (; born May 4, 1967) is an American actress, comedian and singer. She was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1996 to 2002. She has since starred in such sitcoms as ABC's ''Suburgatory ...

as Mrs. Schwartz, the mother of one of Ralphie's friends. The production added several new songs and cut three of the songs from the original Broadway production.

Regional productions

The musical has had several regional productions, including the more recent productions running at the

Walnut Street Theatre Walnut Street Theatre, founded in 1808 at 825 Walnut Street, on the corner of S. 9th Street in the Washington Square West neighborhood of Philadelphia, is the oldest operating theatre in the United States. The venue is operated by Walnut Str ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and at the

Paper Mill Playhouse Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theater containing approximately 1,200 seats located in Millburn, within Essex County, New Jersey, United States, on the banks of the Rahway River. Due to its relative proximity to Manhattan, the theater draw ...

Millburn, New Jersey Millburn is a suburban Township (New Jersey), township in southwestern Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey, and part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's ...

, both productions running from November 2015 through January 2016. The

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

had once served as a regional venue for the musical, hosting it from November to December 2014. Additionally, the musical ran during the 2013 season in at the Wang Theatre in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, the Woodlawn Theatre in

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

and the Bushnell Theatre in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

.Hetrick, Adam
"'A Christmas Story, The Musical' Will Return for 2013 Holiday Season"
Playbill, April 10, 2013

International productions

''A Christmas Story'' premiered in Europe at Waterloo East Theatre London SE1 8TG on November 28, 2018.

Synopsis

;Act 1 After passing a

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

, radio disc jockey

tells his audience that it reminds him of a highly important Christmas from his childhood in Indiana, told through the eyes of young Ralphie Parker. In December 1940, Ralphie plans to convince his parents to get him his dream present ("It All Comes Down To Christmas"). The family goes to Higbees department store where, in the window, Ralphie sees the present in person, a " Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun". The next day, while Ralphie's father struggles with his entry in a crossword puzzle contest ("Genius On Cleveland Street"), Ralphie accidentally blurts out what he wants, which his mother promptly shuts down with the classic excuse "You'll shoot your eye out". On the way to school, Ralphie, his brother Randy and his friends are accosted by bully Scut Farkus and his toady Grover Dill ("When You're A Wimp"). In class, Ralphie's teacher, Ms. Shields, assigns a theme on what the class wants for Christmas. This makes Ralphie think he can use his theme to get Ms. Shields to talk his parents into getting the gun for him ("Ralphie To The Rescue"), but he starts to lose heart as the weeks pass without the paper being graded. One night during dinner ("That's What A Mother Does"), Mr. Parker is informed by telegram that he's won an award in the contest. Soon after, the award arrives: a lamp shaped like a woman's leg. Despite Mrs. Parker's clear disgust, Mr. Parker puts it in the front window for all to see ("A Major Award"). While going to get a tree, the family car gets a flat. Ralphie helps his father change the tire by carrying a hubcap full of the tire's bolts. When it's accidentally knocked out of his hands, he seemingly says, "Oh fudge", though Shepherd clarifies he actually said "the F--- word". He gets in huge trouble for this, and though he claims he heard it from his friend Schwartz - he really heard it from his father - which in turn gets Schwartz in trouble with his mom, he becomes worried that this incident will doom his Christmas ("Act 1 Finale"). ;Act 2 Determined to save his Christmas, Ralphie tries to behave the rest of the month, but this is jeopardized on the last day before winter break when Schwartz "triple dog dares" their friend Flick to stick his tongue to a pole to see if it will stick ("Sticky Situation"). It does, and though no one is caught, the fire department is called to free him. Worse, when the themes are finally returned, Ralphie only gets a C+ instead of the expected A and a note repeating the dreaded phrase ("You'll Shoot Your Eye Out"). On the way home, Ralphie is again accosted by Scut and Grover. Finally snapping, he attacks them in a blind rage, spewing curses all the while. His mother eventually pulls him off and takes him home, and though he's frightened of what will happen, she reassures him and lets the matter drop ("Just Like That"). Still with no way to get the gun, Ralphie next tries the Santa working "At Higbees". This is also a failure, as he's once again told, "You'll shoot your eye out" ("Up On Santa's Lap"). On Christmas Eve, Mrs. Parker "accidentally" breaks the lamp, leading to a big argument with her husband, though they soon make up ("Before The Old Man Comes Home"). That night, all the kids struggle to sleep as they anticipate the coming morning ("Somewhere Hovering Over

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

"). On Christmas morning, the family receives gifts of varying quality, including a humiliating pair of pink bunny pajamas for Ralphie. At the last moment, Mr. Parker reveals he got Ralphie the gun, but when he goes outside, the first shot ricochets and hits his glasses, breaking them. Luckily, he makes up a story about a fallen icicle and his mother doesn't learn the truth. When the neighbor's dogs eat the family's Christmas turkey, they go to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. Despite the setbacks, they and other families have a great Christmas, and that night, Ralphie falls asleep with his cherished gun in his arms ("A Christmas Story").

Casts

Characters

* Ralphie Parker: A little boy who wants a Red Ryder Carbine Action Range Model Air Rifle with a compass in the stock and a thing that tells time. * Jean Shepherd: Old Ralphie who narrates the story. * The Old Man: The gruff father of Ralphie and Randy. * Mother: The glue who holds the Parker family together. * Randy: Ralphie's kid brother. * Miss Shields: Ralphie's teacher. * Schwartz: Ralphie's foul mouthed friend; his family is Jewish in '' A Christmas Story Live!''. * Flick: Ralphie's dim friend who gets his tongue stuck to a flag pole. * Scut Farkus: The class bully who gets beaten up by Ralphie. * Grover Dill: Scut's right-hand man. * Esther Jane: Ralphie's love interest. * Mary Beth: Esther Jane and Nancy's Best friend. * Nancy: Esther Jane and Mary Beth's best friend.

Musical numbers

;Act 1 * "Overture" - Orchestra * "It All Comes Down to Christmas"^- Ralphie, the Parkers, and Ensemble. * "Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun" - Ralphie and Jean * "It All Comes Down to Christmas (Reprise)" - Ralphie and Company * "The Genius on Cleveland Street" - The Old Man and Mother * "When You're a Wimp" - Kids * "Ralphie to the Rescue!" - Ralphie, Miss Shields, the Old Man, Mother, Randy, and Ensemble * "What a Mother Does" - Mother * "A Major Award" - The Old Man, Mother, and Neighbors * "Parker Family Singalong" - The Parkers * "Act One Finale" - Ralphie and Ensemble ;Act 2 * "Entr'acte" - Orchestra * "Sticky Situation" - Ralphie, Flick, Schwartz, Kids, Miss Shields, Nurse, Flick's Mom, Fireman, Policeman, and Doctor * "You'll Shoot Your Eye Out" - Miss Shields and Kids * "Just Like That" - Mother * "At Higbee's" - Elves * "Up on Santa's Lap" - Santa, Elves, Ralphie, Randy, and Kids * "Before the Old Man Comes Home" - The Parkers * "Somewhere Hovering Over Indiana" - Ralphie, Randy, and Kids * "Ralphie to the Rescue! (Reprise)" - Ralphie and Ensemble * "A Christmas Story" - The Parkers and Full Company In the Broadway soundtrack, songs may be different.

Critical reception

The reviewer of the Seattle production wrote:

Just about every nostalgic, humorous vignette, celebrating a kind of quirky childhood innocence enshrined in America's past, gets an up-tempo romp in the polished, very busy score.... performed with vigor by an admirable cast of 33.... But overall, ''A Christmas Story'' looks spiffy, with Walt Spangler's snow-cave design brightened by giant Christmas packages and trees and Howell Binkley's twinkly-tastic lighting. If it's too long a haul, there's a lot here to please kids.

Charles Isherwood Charles Splaine Isherwood Jr. (born October 1964) is an American theater critic. Career A graduate of Stanford University, Isherwood wrote for '' Backstage West'' in Los Angeles. In 1993, he joined the staff of '' Variety'', where he was promote ...

, in his review of the Broadway production for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', wrote:

e stage version lightens up a little on the cute, smart-alecky asides... making room for the music and allowing the story mostly to speak for itself.... Mr. Pasek and Mr. Paul have provided a likable, perky score that duly translates all of the major episodes in the story into appropriate musical numbers.

Nominated awards

The production received two

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town news ...

nominations but did not win: Outstanding New Broadway Musical and Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Lauria). The musical received six

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

nominations (58th Drama Desk Awards), as well as three

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

nominations (Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre) for the 67th Tony Awards, but did not win any.

Original Broadway production

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Christmas Story The Musical Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures 2012 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals based on films Musicals based on multiple works Musicals by Pasek and Paul Christmas musicals Adaptations of works by Jean Shepherd Musicals set in Indiana Parker Family Saga