Monday, December 23, 2019

Forgotten Carols - review


This is a show that I look forward to every year! It always brings me into the holiday spirit. 
The songs are wonderful and heartfelt.

This year was especially great! Mr McLean changed and updated the production. There was a new song too! I was happy the previous songs were still there, but I loved the new way they were shown. This is a wonderful production!

 ‘THE FORGOTTEN CAROLS’ Playing in 11 Cities this Holiday Season
-The 28th Year Brings a New ‘Re-imagined’ Version of the Holiday Tradition to the Stage-

Salt Lake City – The Forgotten Carols, a Holiday season tradition marking its 28th year of consecutive performances, is coming to your home town! This year signals the introduction of a new, “re-imagined” version of the musical with 19 performances covering 11 cities in Utah, Idaho and Arizona. For a list of locations and to buy tickets, visit www.forgottencarols.com.
Michael McLean, a well-known performer, composer, songwriter, author and director initially developed The Forgotten Carols as solely a theme-driven album of new Christmas music. But he soon realized he needed a story to connect all the songs together. McLean wrote the interweaving story of a nurse named Connie Lou who cares for John, an elderly patient who shares the songs about those people he claims to have lived with 2,000 years ago. For his initial performances, McLean played all the parts to give people a sense of how families could present the narration at home hoping it would become a family tradition.
Over the years, McLean’s modest one-man show has evolved into a full scale theatrical production performed for more than a million people throughout the United States and abroad, including shows in Ireland, Germany, England and the Ukraine. And now, after 28 years, McLean is surprising his audiences with significant changes to his classic story!
“People who have been coming for years will be thrilled, I believe, with the changes we’ve made this year,” remarked McLean. “For a few years now, my son and I have been thinking about updating the story, and this year we decided to dive in and do it. Fans will hear the same songs, see the same characters, but experience the story in a completely new way!”
McLean is currently working on adapting the stage version of The Forgotten Carols as a feature film, and it was this process that inspired the story changes. “After we wrote the screenplay for the film, there were so many elements we fell in love with that just had to be in the stage version,” said McLean. “And the changes we’ve made just feel right. They make the characters deeper, the story more spiritual, and the experience that much richer.”
 So, if you’ve been coming for years – come again! And if you’re a new fan – you won’t want to miss your chance to see what we are calling The Forgotten Carols – Reimagined!” quipped McLean.
The Forgotten Carols 2019 concert schedule includes performances in Arizona, Idaho, and Utah. Performance tickets are on sale now. For a complete listing of concert dates and locations or to purchase tickets visit the website at www.forgottencarols.com.

SYNOPSIS
This season, we invite you to join us for this beautifully re-imagined telling of Michael McLean’s holiday tradition THE FORGOTTEN CAROLS. Touring since 1991, this timeless Christmas tradition brings to life the story of Constance Louise Chamberlain, a nurse who hasn’t laughed or cried in over 30 years.  But that all changes when she meets, and cares for, a homeless man with dementia (Uncle John, as he likes to be called) who insists he’s been alive for over two thousand years.  Uncle John recounts the story of Christ’s birth through these Forgotten Carols sung from the perspective of his “friends” the Inn Keeper, a Shepherd, Handel and others, taking Connie Lou on a life-altering journey.  As Uncle John struggles to remember all the reasons why he feels compelled to share these unknown carols with his nurse, she discovers what her heart has forgotten about the true power and meaning of Christmas!



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Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Christmas Jars -- movie review


Movie info:

Hope is an aspiring reporter who has had her fair share of tragedy in life. Abandoned at birth, she's grieving the recent death of her adopted mother when her apartment is burglarized of all her possessions. While reporting the burglary to the police, Hope discovers a jar full of money, labeled "Christmas Jar." Shocked and grateful for this act of kindness, Hope discovers that people all over her hometown of Columbus, Ohio, have been receiving Christmas Jars for years during times of need. The jars are always anonymous and always contain different amounts. In this heartwarming Christmas classic, Hope goes undercover to discover the secret behind the Christmas jars, putting into motion a series of events that will change her life, and her community, forever.

My review

My family and I loved this movie! It is sweet and heartfelt. I especially loved Hope. Her story is sad, but I loved her attitude. She is quite the journalist. I felt her for when she had to choose between her story and the family. Tragedy strikes, but this movie (and book) shows how we can pull together ot help others. This is the perfect movie to get you in the Christmas spirit.

Purchase links


Watch a trailer of the movie here!



Friday, December 6, 2019

Live All In -- weekly inspirational music subscription by Hilary Weeks/Giveaway


DESCRIPTION OF LIVE ALL IN: 
As a member of LIVE ALL IN, you'll receive a brand new Hilary Weeks song every month. You will also have access to a song study that includes scriptures, quotes and questions to help you study the message of the song that month! Every month, you'll receive the sheet music and instrumental track for that song. Plus you'll get the beautifully designed lyrics, coloring page and two 5x7 printables that you can frame for your home or use as lesson handouts. 


Blog Tour Sale Offer - You can purchase a 2020 Live All In Annual Membership for early bird price of $49 (reg. $59) and if you use the coupon SALE15, you get another 15% off! Only $42!! 
You and your family can also enjoy an entire year's worth of gorgeous, monthly music, sheet music, coloring pages, printables for your home, song studies, and lyrics for under $4 a month! 

DIRECT LINK TO PURCHASE: 



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