Many years ago, Chuck Neerland, the father of nimbus co-Artistic Director Liz Neerland, said to his daughter after a show: “Why can’t you just do A White Christmas?” To which Liz replied, “You don’t want to see what we’d do to A White Christmas.” This interaction spawned years of jokes about the production, including a poster design created one year with crayons at the old Little T’s off of Eat Street.
Years later, we finally decided it was time to make the production a reality, and the result is Nimbus Presents: A Count Up to Christmas. And Chuck? Well, he was in the audience opening night. We received his review the next day. What did he think? Read for yourself:
Chuck Neerland’s Review of Nimbus Presents: A Count Up to Christmas
We thought the play was absolutely great. Big, bold and subtle at the same time.
On the steppes of northeast Minneapolis nimbus theatre re-emerges with its Christmas Special at the Crane Theater, Nimbus Presents: A Count Up to Christmas. The set- fir trees, snowbanks, old furniture, a library of sorts and an all-purpose bar/coffee shop- provides ample space for hiding and popping up, which one of the characters, the town's mayor, does to perfection. That alone is worth the admission. It's all about sending up, gently, the old Christmas chestnut.
The cast is great. Each of them verges on going off script, and maybe they do. How would I know? I particularly liked two performances--the somewhat buffoonish guy with the rosy cheeks and the absolute twinkle in his eyes and the aforementioned mayor, who goes from clueless to almost malevolent in the blink of an eye. Yes, this is a love story of the modern kind (two women) and an economic problem solver schtik and all that and ugly sweaters on crew and audience. I suppose I need to mention that Nimbus Presents: A Count Up to Christmas is performed within a mile or two of the Guthrie's more staid and traditional Christmas offerings. This is a bigger city than you think. We recommend you get on your parkas and choppers and mush up to The Crane and then go to Northeast Yacht Club or Tony Jaros' Bar and over a beer and a bump dissect the show. Silent Night it isn't. Maybe Joy to the World.