David Sedaris’s ‘Santaland Diaries’ Gets New Production at Shakespeare & Co.

Ryan Winkles is Crumpet the Elf in 'Santaland Diaries' at Shakespeare & Co. (photo by Kevin Sprague)

(LENOX, Mass.) – Shakespeare & Company presents a new and re-imagined production of David Sedaris’s The SantaLand Diaries, running Friday, December 2, 2011 through December 30, in the Elayne Bernstein Theatre. Company actor Ryan Winkles (The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Mystery of Irma Vep) stars as Crumpet the Elf in the one-man show, which has become an annual tradition at Shakespeare & Company that rotates out the lead actor each year.

The Santaland Diaries is the true account of David Sedaris’s time spent working as a Christmas elf at Macy’s Department Store. The essay on which the play is based propelled Sedaris into the national spotlight when it was first published and is now well on its way to becoming a modern holiday classic.

“It was such great fun working on The Santaland Diaries last year,” says artistic director Tony Simotes. “I knew I wanted to bring it back this season and give some of our other very talented actors a chance to be a part of the show as well.  So, I thought the best way of sharing the mirth and madness of

Ryan Winkles is Crumpet the Elf in 'Santaland Diaries' at Shakespeare & Co. (photo by Kevin Sprague)

the holidays was to invite a rotating crew of actors to step into the starring role. And that’s just what we’ve done. Ryan brings a lot of dexterity, humor, spontaneity, wit and a myriad of talents (including gymnastics) to the role. And although the show has been done before, we are reimagining it together to bring a fresh and lighthearted take on Christmas. There’s a spirit in the play that reminds me of the great clowns in Shakespeare. Touchstone, Feste, and even Puck are early prototypes of Sedaris’ Crumpet the Elf.”

 

 

 

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