Christmas cheer with a difference

Antonia Prebble, Alison Quigan and Michael Hurst in Christ Almighty. Photo / Supplied

Jesus is the reason for the season but the religious aspect of Christmas is frequently lost. This year the team at The Basement is putting Christ back into Christmas for a new telling of the nativity story in Christ Almighty, focusing on the well-known characters who come out each December to gaze at the little lord Jesus. Each character has a back story - and that's where budding writers and actors Natalie Medlock and Dan Musgrove appear.

The twosome, who wrote the off-beat comedies Blinkers and Spurs and A Song for the Ugly Kids, have breathed new life into the shepherds, wise men, angels and other biblical characters.

"We want to put back some humanity, to explore who the people who witnessed this miracle might have been because we hear and see representations of it so often that it's almost become, well, a little bit inhuman," says Musgrove.

But the innkeeper, King Herod, the Virgin Mary and her trusting husband Joseph, the Angel Gabriel, the shepherd and the wise man of Medlock and Musgrove's story are not as you may remember from childhood teachings.

The angel is promiscuous, the wise man erratic and the donkey that carries Mary to the stable talks - mainly about its dubious relationship with one of the other characters. In fact, the eight monologues are all X-rated - it is not a show for children.

"What we're doing might be a bit controversial but we're not putting forward an opinion on God and religion and it's not political," says Musgrove.

The idea was conceived last year after the American cult Christmas comedy The Eight: Reindeer Monologues broke box office records at The Basement.

While Christ Almighty follows the same monologue-driven structure, Musgrove says the similarities end there. Musgrove and Medlock have set their story in real time, concentrating on characters marginalised in the story - like the innkeeper and the donkey - and adding more of a New Zealand perspective.

Many of those who performed in Reindeer Monologues are back and the audience will get no warning of who they'll see on the night.

High-profile newcomers include Keisha Castle-Hughes, Alison Quigan, Lisa Chappell, Michael Hurst, Angela Bloomfield, Robbie Magasiva and several of the Outrageous Fortune cast including Antonia Prebble, Craig Hall and Wesley Dowdell.

They are all donating their services so The Basement can fundraise for improvements to the dressing room and rehearsal space. In return, the actors get the freedom to pick their character and interpret it how they wish.

Each actor gets three hours' rehearsal with one of the two directors: Cameron Rhodes or Colin Moy. McDermott says some are hugely competitive and the pressure to be good instils - pun intended - the fear of God so he has no worries about people learning their lines.

Jennifer Ward-Lealand, Michael Hurst, Keisha Castle-Hughes and Shortland Street's Sarah Thomson also spread a little Christmas cheer at Tapac's The Sexy Recession Cabaret. The 90-minute show features a rotating cast.

Performance

What: Christ Almighty
Where and when: The Basement, December 2-19
What: The Sexy Recession Cabaret
Where and when: Tapac, Western Springs, December 12-20