Stage review: Civic’s ‘All is Calm’ should be as commonplace as ‘Rudolph’

When reviewing local or touring theatrical productions, I often bring my mom along as my plus one. At some point during each show, she’ll inevitably comment “I don’t know how you can see” when I’m taking notes in the dark.

I keep a little notebook on me to write down plot points, standout moments, favorite songs, notable costumes and set pieces, basically anything I think I might mention in my review. Taking notes helps to jog my memory when I start writing the review the next day.

In all my years of reviewing theater, I think I took the fewest notes at Spokane Civic Theatre’s production of “All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914.” Not because it wasn’t memorable but because I was fully engrossed from start to finish.

The show, which sold out its entire run before opening night, is an atypical holiday story. After months of fighting along the Western Front during World War I, nearly 100,000 British and German soldiers set down their weapons for one day so both sides could celebrate Christmas.

The soldiers called a truce and met in no man’s land to sing carols and exchange greetings and small gifts. No man’s land was also home to a few friendly soccer games. Some truces lasted just one night, while others lasted through New Year’s Day.

Playwright Peter Rothstein wrote “All is Calm” using words from letters, diary entries and first-person accounts of the men who participated in the truce. The show features vocal arrangements by Erick Lichte and Timothy C. Takach.

Even though I knew Rothstein used firsthand accounts, I still walked into the theater feeling like I was going to see a feel-good holiday story. After all, the idea of a Christmas truce in the middle of a war seems like something out of a movie.

The musical begins with a beautiful performance of “Will Ye Go to Flanders” from the full cast and a few rousing messages encouraging young men to join the Army.

We then hear from a few men about why they wanted to join. The one that really brought me back to reality and made me realize these young men had no clue what they were getting into was actor Jameson Elton quoting Robert Burns of the 7th Queens Own Cameron Highlanders.

“I lived in the country and there were not many boys my age, so I thought it would be nice to be with a lot of lads on something of a picnic, because we all thought the war would be over by Christmas,” he said.

From there, the actors share quotes of saying goodbye to friends and family, marching in the rain, hearing the sound of gunfire and eventually being so close to no man’s land that you “could hear a chap cough.”

Things take a turn then, with the actors reciting excerpts about the pains of losing a soldier you were close to and singing a song called “I Want to Go Home.”

“I don’t want this old war anymore/ Take me far o’er the sea, where the Alleman cannot get me/ Oh my, I don’t want to die, I want to go home,” they sing.

But then, when the troops are at their lowest, comes Christmas Day. The soldiers spoke of performing impromptu concerts in the trenches, but on the holiday, the troops began exchanging songs, with one German soldier eventually walking into no man’s land and singing “Silent Night.”

An English soldier went out to meet him, followed by troops from both sides. The next few hours were full of singing, exchanging souvenirs like uniform buttons and a few games of soccer. Both sides also took the truce to bury the bodies of the dead soldiers.

Shortly after, troops were called back to their respective sides, and the war continued on. But the Christmas truce, albeit momentarily, brought humanity into a violent situation.

It’s difficult to single out outstanding moments, as each acapella song felt more impressive than the last. The arrangements were not always straightforward, but the cast – Daniel Bell, Jameson Elton, Noah Graybeal, Zach Hardy, JJ Hatheway, Mitch Heid, Terrance MacMullan, Jim Swoboda and Jonah Taylor – made them look easy.

I will note though that Swoboda singing “Silent Night” in German was a really beautiful moment, and I was really surprised to learn that Hardy is still in high school, as his voice was just as strong as the other performers.

Each actor had a great handle on the variety of accents used in this show, from English and German to Scottish and French.

The set, designed by Jeremy Whittington, was simple but effective, with a few platforms, wooden boxes and barbed wire marking the battle ground and no man’s land. Lighting designer Kimberly Roberts used lights to heighten moments featuring gunshots, and costume designer Jamie L. Suter crafted uniforms that looked appropriate for both the time period and the season.

“All is Calm” isn’t your average holiday show, but its powerful story of compassion and peace against all odds should be as commonplace this time of year as stories like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” currently playing on Civic’s mainstage.

“All is Calm” is directed by Abbey Crawford, stage managed by Faith Mitchell and music directed by Jesse Hampsch.

The final show in this run marks the 111th anniversary of the Christmas Truce of 1914.