And out of the basement shall come a Church Basement program of good tidings, great humor and joy! The ladies are serving it up again, this time around it’s an all-new holiday show. Troupe America, Inc., the Producer of the nationally acclaimed musical comedy Church Basement Ladies and Church Basement Ladies 2: A Second Helping opens the holiday season with a new musical comedy Away in the Basement: A Church Basement Ladies Christmas at the Marion Palace Theatre, Friday, December 15th at 7:30 pm.

Away in the Basement takes us back to 1959 and the day of the Sunday School Christmas Program. In the midst of holiday preparations and sprinklings of love in the air, the ladies in their witty, down-to-earth style are creating their own memories from Christmases past and present. Content to do things the way they have always been done yet pondering new ideas, the reality of everyday life hits home as they plan the Sunday School Christmas Program. As the children rehearse up in the sanctuary, several of the ladies of the kitchen are finishing up the treat bags filled with apples, peanuts and ribbon candy while the others put the final touches on the nativity pieces. As they mend old bathrobe costumes, discuss the politics of who’s going to play the various roles, little do the ladies know what surprises are in store for them. Known for their hilarious antics and subtle charm, they are once again called upon to step in and save the day!

In developing an all-new holiday show, Away in the Basement: A Church Basement Ladies Christmas is the third installment in the highly successful production of the musical comedy Church Basement Ladies. Executive Producer Curt Wollan’s creative team includes the talents of composer/songwriter Drew Jansen, who wrote the original score and lyrics for Church Basement Ladies and co-wrote the music and lyrics for the sequel Church Basement Ladies 2: A Second Helping. Sketch comedy writer and head writer for the Medora Musical, Greta Grosch, who wrote the sequel Church Basement Ladies 2: A Second Helping developed the holiday script. Away in the Basement is directed by Curt Wollan, choreographed by Wendy Short Hays with set and lighting design by Scott Herbst, sound design by Mark Brodin, costume design by Katrina Benedict and musical direction by Drew Jansen. 

All three installments of the musical comedy Church Basement Ladies are Inspired by the books of author/humorists Janet Letnes Martin and Suzann Nelson including the bestseller Growing Up Lutheran. The original production opened at the Plymouth Playhouse in September 2005 and performed to 250,000 patrons in it’s two and a half year run. Its sequel, Church Basement Ladies 2:A Second Helping opened March 2008 and ran for eighteen months.

Audiences instantly fell in love with The Church Basement Ladies and it has grown to be the most successful show produced both locally and nationally by Troupe America in its twenty-five year history. The original version of Church Basement Ladies has toured extensively. In 2007, the show toured to 58 cities across the country including a three month run at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville, and was produced by the nationally acclaimed New Theater Restaurant in Kansas City starring William Christopher, known for playing Father Mulcahy on television’s M*A*S*H*. In 2008, Christopher joined the National Tour with performances at the Overture Center for the Performing Arts, Madison, Wisconsin, the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Chicago, and at the Hoyt Sherman Theatre in Des Moines, Iowa. The second junket of the tour included a 51 city tour that traveled to 20 states.

For the best seats, patrons are encouraged to order tickets in advance. Tickets may be purchased in person at the Palace Theatre Box Office, 276 W Center Street, or by phone (740) 383-2101 during box office hours (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri). For patron convenience, ticket purchases may also be made 24/7 online at marionpalace.org. Please note there is a $5 convenience fee per ticket when purchasing tickets online. Tickets will also be available at the door one hour before each performance.  

Tickets: $29, $26, $12

Palace programming is made possible in part by state tax dollars allocated by the Ohio Legislature to the Ohio Arts Council (OAC) and is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.