We may currently be in that strange lull between Christmas and New Year, where no one knows exactly what day it is, or what chaos needs to be rectified after the festive period. However, Red Ladder Theatre Company uplifted our hearts with A Town Called Christmas and reminded the Brighton Dome Studio to ‘hold Christmas’ and enable the Yuletide cheer to return for an hour of pure joy, song, gentle comedy, and an all-inclusive warmth that made us smile.
This wholesome experience, consisting of an extremely compact and festive set of a Christmas hearth in a living room and a hint of a small town covered with snow, was the focal point as we entered the theatre. A few were overheard to be really praising the detail presented to them from the Christmas tree, to the twinkle of the lights from the town. Some say on the circuit that if the set can enchant you from the word go, then the show will be magical. This seemed to be an understatement, as three actors took us not just on a physical journey to this intriguing town called Christmas, but an emotional rediscovery as to how the season can hold memories that brought people together and explored lifelong topics, such as loss, trying to belong somewhere, wanting to make something of yourself and loneliness in an extremely delicate and well handled way that kept everyone engaged and entertained.
The story focused on a girl called Clementine who wanted to find this mysterious town and experience what her late aunt had before when she was a girl. All she had left was one half of a Christmas ornament that looked like a heart, a cracker joke book, and the memories that had been shared with her. By meeting two interesting characters called Glitch and Tim, Clementine slowly realised that the town was no longer the way it was before. Between these three, would they restore Christmas to what it once was? A simple enough story, but one that, as aforementioned, gave space to topics that follow us every day and were handled extremely well. That in itself was down to the actors who performed the story with integrity and the perfect delivery energy. What really struck me, though, was the way in which all three actors displayed a deep sense of trust not just with each other, but the material they were given script-wise by writer Elvi Piper. This was shown through every well-timed comic quip (including cracker jokes) and the extremely recognisable characters showing clear relationships that slowly revealed more layers as the story progressed and invited everyone into their world. A hard feat to achieve with an audience consisting of young, excitable children and families, but one that was achieved with grace and ease.
Maryam Ali’s Clementine had all the right ingredients for our heroine as she set off on her journey to Christmas. She had heart, spirit and courage and had the right amount of balance to the character to show inner growth, curiosity and positivity as she journeyed through the story. Ali’s singing voice had a great range of emotions to tug at the heartstrings with each discovery made and was not afraid to challenge those who were stuck in a seasonal rut to reconnect with what made them happy.
Glitch was a fun robot guide who loved spreading the word about the town and was played by Roo Arwen, who brought a sense of cheeky joy to the proceedings. Roo’s interpretation of Glitch reminded me very much of The Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz in the sense of finding a heart. Unlike Frank L Baum’s Tin Man, Glitch’s purpose was to find out what made their heart glow with happiness and Roo not only gave us a very authentic robot, but a reminder that all of us may be robotic as we continue our set daily routines, but we are also living and breathing and even the most rigid of people have a soul. Joy was clearly had in not only playing Glitch in a physical sense. The audience loved Glitch, too.
Finally, Charles Doherty paid a huge nod to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol through the ever dismally sceptical Tim, partially due to Clementine’s reference to Tiny Tim to comically reflect him being tall. However, Doherty brought a sense of Scrooge to Tim. Not through being miserable, but someone who was not as enthusiastic about the season and shut himself down emotionally. This was done in a sensitive manner, so it was not to mock, but acknowledge that being festive when someone is not healing from past wounds in a metaphorical sense is more common than we think. He had the most difficult journey to deliver as he slowly came back to himself, but Doherty delivered this complex character in an extremely accessible way and delivered the perfect amount of comedy and gravitas to make Tim come to life.
A Town Called Christmas is heartwarming, wholesome and delivers magic in a way that all ages can enjoy. Not to be missed!
Review by Sascha Cooper
The Cast:
Maryam Ali – Clementine
Roo Arwen – Glitch
Charles Doherty – Tim
The Directors:
Elvi Piper – Writer
Richard Priestley – Director
The Creative Team:
Tom Blackband – Sound/Lighting
Bay Bryan – Composer and Musical Director
Eija Gibson – Stage Manager
Antony Jones – Designer
Chris Lloyd – Producer
Lillie-Rose McCormick – ASM
Claire O’Connor – Composer
Kathleen Yore – Puppet Maker
Far away, beyond the snow, and nestled in a perfect nook you’ll find a town called Christmas…
Clementine dreams of a place where gingerbread houses glow under twinkling fairy-lights, and chocolate coins are currency. Where the streets are filled with snow-ball fights, and laughter hangs like baubles in the air! The happiest place on Earth.
Or at least it used to be…
Buckle in for a rollercoaster of magic, music, and mayhem as our hero crash-lands in a crumbling town where only the long-forgotten fables, a cantankerous caretaker and a glitching robot remain! Can they save the day, and the town called Christmas?
A brand-new show for adventurers aged 3–8 and their grown-ups.
ACCESSIBILITY: All performances will be chilled and will include integrated captioning.
Brought to you by Gala Durham, Wrongsemble and Red Ladder Theatre.
A TOWN CALLED CHRISTMAS
Studio Theatre, Brighton Dome
27 to 31 December 2025
