Meredith Willson, after Valentine Davies and George Seaton
HOME, Manchester
December 6-31, 2024: 2 hrs 45 mins
There’s a lot to like about HOME’s Christmas show for 2024. Based on the 1947 film (remade, with story variations and Richard Attenborough in the lead role in 1994), the 1963 musical version of Miracle on 34th Street has all the charm of a much-loved Yuletide tale, presented by a small but highly talented cast and band, and brimming with festive goodwill.
You probably know the story. Macy’s department store in New York needs to hire a new Santa Claus in a hurry because the expected one has hit the bottle, and Mr Kris Kringle turns up and does the job so well that it seems he’s got the job for life… until they realise he’s telling customers to find what they need in another store if Macy’s hasn’t got it.
This actually increases customer loyalty to Macy’s, but the store's event director, Doris Walker (Natalie Wood’s role in the film), is appalled when Kris tells her daughter, Susan, that he is the real Santa. Not only does she insist to Susan that there’s no Santa Claus, but she’s an unhappy woman because she was deserted by her child’s father.
Kris is interviewed by a psychologist and ends up in court: Doris’s nice-guy neighbour Fred happens to have qualified as an attorney and defends him on the ground that he really is the one and only Santa Claus… and of course he really is, because miracles happen when he’s around.
The show cleverly frames the story by beginning with an elderly gent whose toyshop has closed down and is about to be demolished; with mirror-roles in his story played by the main protagonists of the original we are about to see.
The little girl who wants to save Kris becomes Susan, and as she enters his “Miracle” store to see the host of magical gifts he’s made, it transforms in her dreams to 34th Street in New York and the Macy’s story begins. The characters enter and exit this magic world as the show proceeds, so the culmination of the older story is also that of the new.
That is seamlessly achieved in Sara Joyce’s production of Meredith Willson’s creation, and even the characters’ accents smoothly change from Manc to Yank accordingly. The main set (Ciaran Bagnall) is a remarkable panoply of toys on shelves from floor to ceiling, and the costumes (Lara Booth) feature many quick-changes for multiple characterisations, and are in period for the differing time frames.
The show is peppered with upbeat or sentimental musical numbers as required, and even has two old favourites (both by Meredith Willson, who wrote and composed the whole show, first known as Here's Love) worked into it: "It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas" (complete with counter-melody and words) and "Till there was you" for the happy ending. And there are some lively dance numbers, particularly as Santa expounds his motto of “Here's love” and when the toys come to life in the store in “Expect things to happen”.
It's all good hokum and just about gets away with the American idea that love for fellow-human and commercial success can always be united – with a smattering of US folk religion, as Santa tells us we’ve got to have “faith” to be somebody, and even quotes “The meek shall inherit the earth” from Jesus’ Beatitudes as his own motto.
All depends, of course, on the performers. The child role of Susan is shared by Harriet, Karis and Lillie, and though I’m not clear which one we saw on Press night I’m sure they’re all as brilliant as she was.
Jessica Joslin (a very nice dancer) is Doris, Matthew Hawksley is Fred the guy next door, Stephanie Hockley is wonderfully madcap as Shellhammer, the store’s toy department head.
Ida Regan is suitably mean as Sawyer the shrink, and Zweyla Mitchell is Judge Harper – and all play other roles, as does Christopher Jordan (Mr Macy), who has a fine Elvis-style moment in "That man over there". And Adam Vaughan is Kris Kringle – the best department-store Santa you’re ever likely to meet.
Letters to him can be submitted by show-goers, who could even get their wishes read out for all to hear during the show!
More info and tickets here
