Today@Sam Article

Radio Show Evokes Simpler Times

Dec. 11, 2020
SHSU Media Contact: Emily Binetti

By Jackie Swan

Nothing suits the holiday season more than families, traditions, and nostalgia.

In a year when festivities are vastly different from usual, the College of Arts & Media provides a sense of comfort and familiarity with the Holiday Radio Show, a program streaming for free, Dec. 12-25.

Performed by students of the Department of Theatre and Musical Theatre, ​the Holiday Radio Show consists of three radio plays, each a time capsule of the holiday season during the mid-20th century. 

The first radio play is “The Royal Gelatin Radio Hour Christmas Show.” Set in 1932, the comedic monologue tells a familiar tale of a young mother on Christmas morning failing to negotiate holiday pressures with her husband and children.

What if Santa refused to deliver toys? The second radio play, “Santa Claus Sits Down” is set in 1942 and explores what would happen if Santa went on strike.  Mr. Kringle is more than willing to share all his reasons (which stretch across centuries) for why he might do just that.

The final radio play, “The Six Shooter Christmas Show," originally broadcast in 1952, presents a familiar holiday tale retold as an American Western about a young boy who runs away from home on Christmas Eve. The tender-hearted story reveals how the boy meets a mysterious stranger who helps him understand the true meaning of Christmas. 

“These pieces were developed and performed on the radio in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s during the heyday of radio. They harken back to a time when family gathered around the radio and listened to well-known figures from all walks of life talk about the happenings around the world, across the nation, and at the local grocery store,” said Penny Hasekoester, associate dean of the College of Arts & Media and creative director for this holiday program. “People were brought together because of these voices who told stories over the airwaves. All you had to do was listen and use your imagination. It was a simpler time. We hope to take our listeners back, if only for a short period, to that simpler time.”

The Holiday Radio Show is free and streaming access will be available on the CAM Box Office website from Dec. 12 through Dec. 25.

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