Theatrical Outfit Presents 'A Christmas Memory' Dec 15 - 23

Tom Key’s beloved one-man stage adaptation of the Truman Capote classic offers an intimate alternative to local seasonal spectaculars

For an exclusive run of only nine performances this holiday season, Theatrical Outfit will feature Executive Artistic Director, Tom Key, on stage for his one-man show adaptation of Truman Capote’s cherished story, A Christmas Memory. The performance will consist of two acts—the first act of holiday music by bluegrass band, The Georgia Potlickers, will complement the second act’s theatrical narration by Key: “The actor, the words and the audience’s imagination is all you need. Reader’s theatre really invites the audience to let their imagination run free.” An Alabama native himself, Key narrates the semi-autobiographical tale of seven-year-old Alabama boy, Buddy, and his unique friendship with his elderly eccentric cousin, like “a lost pair of kites hurrying towards heaven." Comedic, realistic, and with childlike charisma, the adventures in A Christmas Memory offer an intimate holiday event for the entire family.

Much like last season’s Amahl and the Night Vistors, A Christmas Memory delivers the same simplicity and charm of holiday storytelling—as if the audience is being entertained in Key’s own home. In fact, Tom Key had not originally intended to fully adapt Capote’s work, but was encouraged to do so by his family and friends, for whom he had made a holiday tradition of performing the work. In 1973, Key was asked by the local YMCA in Knoxville, TN to perform his adaptation during graduate school. However, it was not until after his tour of Cotton Patch Gospel in 1982 that Key was approached by several regional theatre companies to take A Christmas Memory to the stage, including the Alliance Theatre in the late 1980s. Most notable of A Christmas Memory’s presentations is that it was the first work to be performed at Theatrical Outfit’s newly-renovated downtown home, The Balzer Theater at Herren’s, on December 16, 2004. Of this performance, Wendell Brock wrote, “That Key can evince so much whimsy and filigree from Capote’s tales is a testament to his gift as a storyteller.” “…[A Christmas Memory] remains a rich and evocative glimpse of the vanishing South—and a wise commentary on the intricacies of friendship, kindness and giving” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2004); all warm and resonant notes of the holiday spirit.

Tickets are $15 - $30 and are available now. For more information about show times and tickets, call the Box Office at 678.528.1500 or visit www.theatricaloutfit.org. Box Office is open Tuesday – Friday from noon – 6:00pm and prior to all performances. Group rates available. Theatrical Outfit in The Balzer Theatre at Herren’s, 84 Luckie Street, Atlanta, GA 30303.