Barney the Elf As a non-Christian, I have no brief for Christmas. But Other Theatre brings a whole chorusful of gold lamé briefs to this oddly compelling holiday tribute. I say “oddly” because the 90-minute show sure as hell doesn’t follow the usual path to Yuletide cheer. Santa Claus has died, to start, leaving behind a widow and one grown son, Junior, who’s expected to follow in dad’s footsteps. But Junior is a jerk, bent on introducing efficiencies at the expense of joy. One of his first acts is to fire Barney, whose exuberance makes his fellow elves entirely too happy. That sends Barney to Chicago, where he meets drag queen Zooey and learns a few things about himself, while we get the best-ever explanation for what makes reindeer fly. The whole ensemble is jolly and deft, but Roy Samra’s Barney is incandescent, especially when singing a surprisingly unironic “O Holy Night.” Dixie Lynn Cartwright’s Zooey is endearingly wry. —Tony Adler
A Gilbert and Sullivan Jewelry Box An evening of Gilbert & Sullivan deep cuts in two parts, this is the maiden voyage for Transgressive Theatre-Opera in collaboration with the Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company of Hyde Park. The double bill opens with a tedious sort of tribute to two works from the tail end of the Savoy opera duo’s canon, The Grand Duke (1896) and Utopia Limited (1893). Adapter Aaron Hunt, also the company’s artistic director, salvages a decent 90-minute concert from what he describes, in his additional capacity as the show’s narrator, as a pair of flops. But Cox and Box (1847) is another story. To see sopranos Teaira Burge and Celeste Peake go to work on this one-act farce as two gents renting a single apartment, unbeknownst to one another, is simply to fall in love with them. Susan Gosdick plays Bouncer, their landlord. —Max Maller
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A Rock ’N’ Roll Musical A giant knight with a green body (Jack Wright), interrupting King Arthur’s Christmas Eve feast, challenges Sir Gawain (Chris Causer) to knock his head off with a shiny ax. We’re in the Middle Ages, clearly. Gawain, who says “gramercy” instead of “thanks,” is a medieval kind of guy. He goes on quests, wards off the temptress Lady Grey (Caroline Kidwell), and keeps asking the way to a mysterious Green Chapel in the woods for a rematch with green face. And that’s fine. But what’s Causer doing singing hair metal? How come he and the indeed very green White, face paint and all, stop the play dead to do a cringeworthy Scorpions cover? As medieval pastiche, John C. Ashton’s show for Pearl Poet Productions takes itself too seriously. As a rock musical, it’s embarrassing. But as both together, it’s the weirdest thing on wheels. Nich Radcliffe directs. —Max Maller
