LAFPI

Holiday entertainment just got more magical. Think, “A Christmas Carol” meets “It’s a Wonderful Life” meets…*NSYNC. It’s Christmas Eve 2009 and Chris Kirkpatrick from *NSYNC has a decision to make. This musical parody mashup of holiday classics features 12 original songs in a celebration of the season with music direction by Taylor Williams, whose work can be heard on the Grammy Award winning albums Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and The Color Purple (2016 Revival).

“We didn’t originally set out to make an *NSYNC musical, but it was impossible to tell the story of Chris without telling the story of *NSYNC,” explained Valen Shore. “At some point it became our number one goal to be as historically accurate as possible, even in the context of a magical holiday musical.”

Valen Shore (Music/Lyrics/Book/Co-Director; Chris) is a playwright and musician whose music has had millions of streams across all platforms. Her songs have been featured on Riverdale, The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, Lucifer, Pretty Little Liars, and The Sims 4. In 2018 she toured with BRONCHO and SYML.

“We both grew up during the boy band era but Chriskirkpatrickmas isn’t just a story about *NSYNC (though there’s definitely a lot of *NSYNC in it), it’s also a story about identity and what might happen on the other side of a dream come true,” says Alison Zatta. “It’s a comedic love letter to the real-life Chris Kirkpatrick, without whom there would be no *NSYNC.”

Alison Zatta (Lyrics/Book/Co-Director/Producer; Marky Mark) is an L.A. based actor, writer, and filmmaker. Alison made her professional stage debut at age 12 in McCarter Theatre’s A Christmas Carol in Princeton, NJ. Selected credits include the music video for P!nk’s F**kin’ Perfect, directed by Dave Meyers, and the title role in the DC premiere of Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice. Alison’s award-winning short film “Girl Meets Roach,” screened at over 40 festivals worldwide. She recently completed another festival circuit with her script “The Break-App” (Winner, Copa Shorts Film Festival Comedy Screenwriting Competition; Finalist: Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition, Oxford Film Festival Screenwriting Competition; Semi-Finalist, Omaha Film Festival Screenwriting Competition).

“It’s the tiny details that come from craft and time that are buried in the show for audiences to discover. These songs have gone through numerous iterations to make sure each one fits perfectly in its moment of the show. From the first time I spoke with Valen and Ali, I knew that they were capable of creating something very special. With music as good as this, a book as smart as this, and people as talented and as dedicated as this, I really think they’ve done it,” says Music Director Taylor Williams; whose work can be heard on the Grammy Award winning albums Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and The Color Purple (2016 Revival).

Music Director Taylor Williams is a composer, orchestrator, and electronic music designer. His electronic music work can be heard on the Grammy Award-winning albums of Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and The Color Purple (2016 Revival), as well as the original cast albums of Heathers, Moulin Rouge, and Beetlejuice. He has collaborated with such artists as Sara Bareilles, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Alan Menken, Stephen Schwartz, Heather Headley, Steve Martin, and Baz Luhrmann.

The Cast: Riley Rose Critchlow (Lance) Best Performance in a Play for starring in the world premiere of The Girl Who Would Be King at El Centro; Elizabeth Ho (Joey) played “Jenny” opposite Kathy Bates in Netflix’s Disjointed, Emily Lambert (Lou) performed with Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC, Stratford), The Member of the Wedding (Off-Broadway), I Love You Because (London); Mia-Carina Mollicone (J.C.) regional theatre includes Jesus Christ Superstar (Mary Magdalene) and It’s a Wonderful Life (Violet Bick); Valen Shore (Chris) has songs featured on Riverdale, The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, Lucifer, Pretty Little Liars, and The Sims 4; Nicole Wyland (Justin) performed in Uptown (Pasadena Playhouse) and Our Town (Kennedy Center Theatre Festival); Alison Zatta (Marky Mark) played the title role in the DC area premiere of Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice.

Creative Team: Josh Millican (Sound Design), Lili Fuller (Choreographer).

“Chriskirkpatrickmas: A Boy Band Christmas Musical” opens at 8pm on Thursday, December 1 and runs at 8pm Wednesday – Saturday; 2pm Saturday matinees; and 3pm Sundays through December 11, 2022. The Actors Company is located at 916 N Formosa Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90046. Tickets: $45 at https://www.chriskirkpatrickmas.com/ with ample street parking nearby and the West Hollywood Gateway (with underground parking structure), within short walking distance. Information: 323-201-7050. All tickets include entrance to A BOY BAND CHRISTMAS PARTY following each performance, a nostalgic, interactive after-party with the cast, featuring holiday + boy band music and special surprises! (Party runtime: 90 minutes, with people free to leave/stay as they please).

Face masks are required to be worn indoors at all times.