Christmas shows help bind families

By JOANN JONES

LISALYNN SEGRETARIO of Austintown has attended every Trans-Siberian Orchestra performance at the Chevy Centre with her husband and two daughters.

Except the one this year.

“The performance was just too close to Halloween,” she said of TSO’s performances Nov. 1. “Youngstown is where they always open, and we just weren’t ready for a holiday show.”

“But if I had gone this year, I would have been just as awed as I was at the first show,” she said.

Segretario said the performance was “so amazing” that she and her husband bought tickets for 17 family members the next year.

Her family continued to go year after year, purchasing seats in different places in the auditorium to experience the show from different angles.

“We absolutely have to take the children,” she said, adding that they are a musical family as well as a family rooted in strong Italian traditions. She performs in a band with her brother and also owns Special Request DJ Service. Her 10-year-old daughter is a “pretty accomplished pianist,” and the younger one is dabbling in the drums.

Seeing a live show or a movie over and over again, especially during the holidays, is a tradition for many families and groups of friends.

One of these traditions is “Miracle on Easy Street,” which is marking its 20th year this season.

“Many of the people who come to see the show say it just wouldn’t be Christmas without it,” said Maureen Collins, co-founder with Todd Hancock of Easy Street Productions, which puts on the show in Powers Auditorium. This year’s show runs Dec. 19-21 with four performances.

“This show is literally what gets us through the year,” Collins said. “One lady just called for tickets, and she said this is her 16th year. Members of my family and Todd’s have seen it all 20 years, even before it came to Powers.”

Collins and Hancock host the event, with Collins giving Hancock the credit for decorating, writing the scripts, and “wearing a lot of hats.”

“Parents who came to the show as kids are now bringing their own kids, and are now buying a ticket for the ‘grandma’ as well,” Collins said with a chuckle.

Hancock said that community members who were “rascals” in the show when they were younger have come back later to be in the show.

“Many come back year after year, even in their mid-20s as dancers,” he said.

Collins explained that their show is a little bit of a diversion from the traditional holiday performances of “The Nutcracker” or “A Christmas Carol.”

“Having a variety show featuring people in the community … people who are practicing in their homes and then coming in here from 5 to 8 is different,” Collins said. “It’s ‘Big Apple’ entertainment without the ‘Big Apple’ price.”

Collins compared the show to that of Radio City Music Hall and the Rockettes, adding that the more than 60 dancers are phenomenal. And all are local talent. In addition, she praised the talents of the Easy Street Little Big Band, musicians who have been with Easy Street for 20 years.

Yet, some people just can’t give up that tradition of seeing shows such as Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.”

“I don’t know how many times I’ve seen it,” Debbie Weibush of Alliance said. “My son, Ryan, was in it for two years, and then my nephew, Michael, was in it for at least five.”

Did Weibush stop going when her son and nephew no longer performed? No.

“I still go to see it every year with a retired teacher friend from Columbiana,” she said. “It’s our Christmas get-together.”

Dr. Karen Berry said people watch the same holiday movies and shows year after year because it is part of holiday tradition and is often associated with pleasant memories of past holiday seasons.

Family traditions or rituals are important to the ways a family functions, Berry said, adding that they provide comfort as well as foster family identity and a sense of belonging.

“In addition to providing a time for togetherness, they serve to strengthen family relationships and stability,” explained Berry, a psychologist with Catholic Charities Community Services in Medina.

“When we think of our childhood holidays,” Berry said, “often our most vivid memories involve a family ritual, whether it is attending a particular show or neighborhood caroling.”

In addition, Berry said, rituals serve as a connection between generations, which reinforces family ties.

Berry also said that in times of family transition, such as the financial distress that many families face today, families may change some traditions, such as staying home to watch holiday movies instead of attending a performance.

“But the essential purpose — a time for family togetherness and strengthening of family relationships — remains intact,” Berry said.

Pat and Archie Williams of Berlin Center do just that: they watch their favorite, “Miracle on 34th Street,” at home every Christmas season.

“It’s tradition,” Pat Williams said. “We watch all the different versions every year.”

“It starts our holiday spirit,” her husband, Archie, added.

That’s not all these shows do, according to Berry.

“The shows can promote relaxation and a break from the stress of daily living,” Berry said.

And who doesn’t need that during the holiday season?