A Central New York holiday tradition, “The Adventures of Rudolph,” celebrates its 31st anniversary this year. The Cultural Resources Council of Syracuse and Onondaga County, Inc. presents its annual holiday family show at 11 a.m. Saturday Dec. 12 at the John H. Mulroy Civic Center’s Crouse-Hinds Concert Theatre. “The Adventures of Rudolph” is a narrated ballet performed by the Center of Ballet and Dance Arts in Syracuse.
Additional performances are at 10 a.m. Wednesday Dec. 9 and Thursday Dec. 10, and at 10 a.m. and noon Friday Dec. 11. Tickets range in price from $9.50 to $13.50 and are available through the Syracuse Symphony Box Office, 424-8200. (Discounts of $1 per ticket are available with the purchase of four or more tickets.)
The show is a product of the creative team of Deborah Boughton and Vince Tunbiolo. Boughton is the director of the Center of Ballet & Dance Arts in Syracuse. Tunbiolo (Boughton’s husband) wrote the original story that Boughton staged to the dynamic music of Prokofiev.
Center of Ballet and Dance Arts students from Baldwinsville, Liverpool, Cicero, North Syracuse, Cazenovia, Jordan-Elbridge, and Marcellus school districts will be performing as Rudolph, the witch, elves, soldiers, harlequin dolls and more.
Synopsis
It is a week before Christmas and Santa’s elves are busy making presents. The evil Witch Winter Grey kidnaps the elves so that they might make presents just for her. Only Santa’s reindeer Rudolph can penetrate the gloom around the witch’s castle with his bright nose. When he arrives at the castle, he and the elves make a plan to escape from the witch.
One of the gifts the elves make for the witch is a magic mirror of truth, which will show the witch what she really is – an ugly hag. The elves and Rudolph refuse to tell her the secret of the mirror until she agrees to release them and change her evil ways. The witch agrees and is transformed into the beautiful Witch Winter White.
When the elves, Rudolph and Witch Winter White return to Santa’s workshop, it is Christmas Eve. They find Santa disheartened because there is no snow and the reindeer, who move through the air by stepping on snowflakes, will not be able to fly. Witch Winter White offers her help and begins her magical dance that fills the air with snowflakes. The reindeer can fly and Christmas will come after all.
B’ville cast members
Gretchen Grage, 14
Freshman at Durgee Junior High School
Cast as reindeer and snowman
Eight years with Center of Ballet & Dance Arts
Fourth year appearing in “The Adventures of Rudolph” – past roles were soldier, snowman and reindeer.
Francesca Libbon, 17
Senior at C.W. Baker High School
Cast as ballerina doll and reindeer
Eight years with Center of Ballet & Dance Arts
Seventh year in “The Adventures of Rudolph” – past roles were soldier, elf, reindeer, Donder and ballerina doll.
Christina Kwiek, 16
Junior at C.W. Baker High School
Cast as Rudolph
Four years with Center of Ballet & Dance Arts
Fourth year in “The Adventures of Rudolph” – past roles were soldier, elf, reindeer, Donder and Rudolph
(From left) Gretchen Grage, Francesca Libbon and Christina Kwiek.
