The Pigeon Gets A Standing Ovation

James Carrington as Elephant Gerald (left) and Rachael Zientek as Piggie in The Pigeon Gets A Big Time Holiday Extravaganza! at First Stage. Photo credit: Paul Ruffolo.

A review of The Pigeon Gets A Big Time Holiday Extravaganza!

by Meika Olson, age 17

Should you let the pigeon drive the bus? There’s only one right answer to that question—an answer that the excited crowd of First Stage’s world premiere The Pigeon Gets A Big Time Holiday Extravaganza! already knew, and shouted out when prompted. This new holiday musical brings to life the beloved Mo Willems characters—from best friends Piggie and Elephant, to the mischievous but well-meaning Pigeon and an entire gaggle of friendly squirrels—in a creative, fun-filled way that is sure to bring smiles to the face of every member of your family this season.

The show follows several different storylines, all tied together through song. The Pigeon (with the use of a lovely puppet designed by Nicki Kulas) is taking a long journey to get presents—not later, but now. Meanwhile, Elephant Gerald and Piggie struggle with the fear that maybe, just maybe, the presents they got for each other just aren’t perfect enough. During all of this mayhem, the group of squirrels (led by Ava Sabel as Zoomy Squirrel in the Hotdog Cast) is planning a massive holiday party that just might turn out to be too massive.

As a whole, this show is absolutely targeted towards younger audiences, but that does not at all mean that older theatre lovers won’t enjoy it as well. The script had a lot of funny moments, and as an audience member I didn’t just hear laughter from the children in the audience, but lots of laughter from the parents and older siblings sitting around me. All of the actors, especially James Carrington as Elephant and Kailey Azure Green as The Pigeon, had exceptional comedic timing that left their entire audience laughing.

It wasn’t just the script, however, that was well written—all of the songs in this show were not only beautifully sung, but perfect for a holiday musical like this one and exceptionally catchy. I mean, one of the songs is literally titled “Catchy Holiday Song,” and it is in fact stuck in my head as I type these words. You have been forewarned. The cast was full of talented vocalists, but the standout singing voices of the show belonged to Rachael Zientek as Piggie, Ava Sabel as Zoomy Squirrel, and Jule Jordan Schloemer as Zappy Squirrel. The choreography of the show left something to be desired in terms of creativity, but the entire cast more than made up for it with their exceptional harmonies.

Speaking of the cast, these characters are portrayed by both adult and youth performers. In some productions, this combination could seem odd, or one group or the other could seem out of place, but that was not the case with this show. Both groups of performers, across the entire age range, worked together well onstage, and no one felt out of place.

All in all, The Pigeon Gets A Big Time Holiday Extravaganza! is exactly what its title promises: a big-time Holiday extravaganza full of delightful music, humor, and artistry! Tickets for this show are on sale now at First Stage, and I highly recommend you go grab them now before they’re gone!