By Marilou Yacoub 

What if Christmas were canceled? It's a question that sets the stage for Concordia Conservatory's 27th Annual Holiday Community Musical, The Time They Canceled Christmas, premiering December 5 and 6 at the Bronxville School Auditorium. Click here to purchase tickets.

Written by Greg Suss and Charles duChateau, the original musical takes audiences on a journey between the present-day North Pole and the Massachusetts Bay Colony of 1659, when Christmas celebrations were actually outlawed. The story imagines how Christmas was saved and how Santa Claus met Mrs. Claus. 

The production brings together more than 50 children, teens, and adults from Westchester County and the Bronx, continuing a Concordia Conservatory tradition that has become part of the community's holiday season. 

For 27 years, the Conservatory's Holiday Community Musical has offered participants the opportunity to take part in a full theatrical production, regardless of their previous stage experience. The program is tuition-free, allowing performers of different ages and backgrounds to work together, develop their talents, and build friendships through music and theatre. 

Behind the scenes, a creative team is bringing this year's original musical to life. Grace Smyth serves as Stage Director, with Charles duChateau as Music Director, Jason Summers as Choreographer, and Katie Yacoub as Assistant Director/Choreographer. Michele Rohr is designing the costumes, and Eric Zoback is responsible for set design. 

At the heart of the production is its community cast, whose members have spent the fall rehearsing and preparing for the December performances. 

This year's cast includes: Logan Anderson, Sabrina Anderson, Ciara Andrews, Sheridan Arroyo, Hudson Axelbaum, Arya Bridgewater Tejeda, Hudson Buzzeo, Maya Buzzeo, Megan Byrne, Maite Castro, Juliette Cebenoyan, Colin Chalk, Vivian Chalk, Yadiel De La Mota, Niara Dufane-Armand, Gia Duncan, Brianna Fazio, Stella Foster, Gio Galindo, Ariana Gleason, Maya Gleason, Camryn Horowitz, Elliot Horowitz, Zoe Hug, Hope Ikiri, Joshua Judin, Sofia Jurga-Vergara, Eva Katsichtis, Miriam Kaufman, Loretta Kosiek, Sarah Kotti, Blake Lander, Oliver Manice, Kathleen Moriarty, Vivienne Nolan, Cole Petersen, Rory Pingel, Lyanna Pollakowski, Sylvia Ramos, Porter Rao, Wren Roach, Jordyn Scarlett, Alyssa Sequeira, Amylia Sequeira, Alexandra Seuffert, Aniya Shaw, Lilly Slaughter, Sean Spillane, Georgina Stone, Kingsley Stone, Diana Sullivan, Jack Tarter, Kayla Tobin, Ben Tyree, Cecilia Waller, Katherine White, Effie Wrzesc, and Madison Yazurlo. 

The backstage crew includes: Scout Caporoso, Erica Colabella, Lily Fleming, Elizabeth Gjelaj, Victoria Gjelaj, Angie Shih, Neriah Sims, and Luciana Vazquez. 

While the story takes audiences back to the 17th century, the production itself is very much rooted in today's community. It brings together families, young performers, returning participants, and volunteers who share in the experience of creating a musical from the ground up. 

The Time They Canceled Christmas will be performed on Saturday, December 5, at 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm, and Sunday, December 6, at 3:00 pm, at the Bronxville School Auditorium, 177 Pondfield Road. Tickets are available at concordiaconservatory.org or by calling 914-395-4507. 

Founded in 1977, Concordia Conservatory is a nonprofit community music school dedicated to inspiring, instructing, and enriching lives through excellence in music education and performance. Serving Westchester County, NY, and Fairfield County, CT, the Conservatory offers exceptional music education, scholarships, professional concerts, adaptive arts programming, music therapy, and community outreach for individuals of all ages and abilities. 

Through programs such as its tuition-free Holiday Community Musical, Concordia Conservatory continues its commitment to making the arts accessible while enriching the cultural life of the communities it serves.