The Gay Men’s Chorus of San Diego presents its holiday concerts at Sherwood Auditorium this year. The programs, at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 16 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 17, include the 10th anniversary performances of the group’s hilarious parody, “Nutcracker: Gay Men in Tights.” Think Ballets de Trocadero San Diego.
Artistic director Gary Holt said, “This is an all-new production. You have to have a reason why the guys are dancing, so the story line is that while preparing their unique rendition of the holiday classic, the ballerinas of the Hillcrest Academy of Tap, Ballet and Decoupage were detained at the border after traveling to Tijuana for a bachelorette party.”
Truth be told, one of them was trying to smuggle Viagra back to the States.
“So Madame Anastasia has been forced to send in the handsome men of the troupe in to perform all the ‘Nutcracker’ roles,” said Holt, who conducts the concerts. “We’ve taken seven of the most popular movements, including ‘Waltz of the Flowers,’ ‘Arabian Dance’ and ‘Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies.’ It’s very gay, over the top, really funny and quite delightful.”
For the holiday concerts, the chorus comprises 50 singers. Music to be heard also includes traditional and contemporary holiday fare, such as Mariah Carey’s “Miss You Most at Christmastime,” and “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” Also to be performed are Conrad Susa’s “Fum, Fum, Fum!” in Spanish, “O Magnum Mysterium” in Latin, and “Basman Haze,” which incorporates three Chanukah blessings, in Hebrew.
The chorus also performs “The Twelve Films of Christmas,” which features comedy vignettes from “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Brokeback Mountain,” among others.
Sherwood Auditorium is located at the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, 700 Prospect St.
For information and tickets ($30-$35), visit www.gmcsd.com or call (619) 57-GMCSD.