Director Cameron Watson Wants You To Believe Kris Kringle Is Santa Claus

“Something about being transformed to a more innocent time seemed like something that would be appealing to people in this current world we live in.” That’s how director Cameron Watson explains some of the motivation behind the Pasadena Playhouse’s decision to stage the radio play version of the holiday classic Miracle on 34^th Street. Tonight is the show’s official opening.

The beloved film from 1947 tells the story of a man, Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn), who claims he is Santa Claus. His popularity at Macy’s combined with his claim of really being Jolly Old St. Nick prompts a lawsuit challenging his assertions and his mental stability. The film also starred Maureen O’Hara and a very young Natalie Wood.

Watson explains the history of this particular script. “The radio play was one of the series of Lux Radio Plays,” he says. “Lux was the very popular washing detergent in the 40s and 50s. They had very successful long-running radio plays and this actual version was done in 1947. The script was truncated to fit that format and the actual movie cast did the radiocast. You can actually hear it on YouTube, which was a big tool for us to listen to it and hear how magical it was.”

Watson has become a fixture in local theatre. He has directed highly-acclaimed productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Super Variety Match Bonus Round, Picnic and Top Girls. He promises a few surprises that will make this more than just actors reading a script.

“The script itself is full of holiday cheer,” he reveals. “But we wanted to make this an event for the family. You will be transformed by the story. We have a fabulous actor who is a fabulous singer who is going to be singing. We’ll be adding Christmas carols. We’ll be doing the commercials and adding holiday elements at the end of the play.”

The cast for this production features Alfred Molina in the central role of Kris Kringle. Peri Gilpin (Frasier) in the O’Hara role and Cecilia Witt in Natalie Wood’s role.

Though LA Theatre Works has a regular season of similar programming, what concerns does Watson have that the success of this show might make it easier for theatres to cut costs and rely more on less traditionally-presented plays?

“I don’t think it would ever overtake full-blown productions,” he says. “I don’t think that’s the agenda at The Pasadena Playhouse. It’s let’s make something really special. But there’s a place for this radio play format. I don’t think an audience would want to see these kind of things over and over and over. Because it’s a smaller time commitment I think we were able to attract these actors. I think this fits that slot that it’s fitting in. ”

Fans of the movie know that the climactic scene involves the delivery of a ton of letters to the courthouse. How does Watson address such memorable moments in this production? “We’re being very faithful to the text, but we’ve come up with a way to visually tie in those kind of elements that are important to the emotional arc of the story. You have the Macy’s Parade, New York City, Times Square and the courtroom. We’ve come up with a way to visually aid us within the world of a radio play.

I first met Watson years ago when he served as general manager and bartender at a now-defunct restaurant/bar called Mandalay and The Pearl. So I had to ask if all that time he was there was he wearing a “What I Really Want to Do Is Direct” t-shirt underneath his shirt.

“The t-shirt I was wearing was ‘I really want to be on a tv show as an actor,’ which I had a good run. But underneath that was ‘I want to be a director.’ In college I was studying to be an actor, but I started directing in college and I knew it was the direction I was going to go. I think I’ve had that secret t-shirt on under layers of clothes for several years.”

[Editor’s Note: The trailer shown is not the official trailer for the film’s original release. It is, however, a much finer representation of the film than the studio’s original trailer. The original film is also in black and white. This is from the colorized version of Miracle on 34th Street.)

Photo Credit:  Nick Agro