three Christmas performances

Layla had a performance for her musical theater class. This is the class she takes with her cousin Macie so there was a big group to cheer them both on. It was a simple performance during the end of their regular class time, but we got to see them perform the songs they’ve been working on all semester—a song from Peter Pan and The Grinch. I have to say, Layla was much improved as a performer since last year.

Our second performance was quite impromptu, but just the cutest. We were watching a friend’s kids one evening, when the girls approached me decked like this.

They had created very detailed plans to perform "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer." Layla and her matching friend would be the backup singers. So they brought a mattress downstairs as their stage, wrote out some of the trickiest lyrics on a poster, made sure everything from their shoes to the size of the reindeer nose was just right, and asked me to play the music and hold the spotlight. When the girls’ mom and dad came to pick them up these three performed their show with a lot of pizzaz and enthusiasm.

Perry and our friends son decided they wanted in on the performing fun and did some impromptu dancing for us. I was on music and spotlight again so I didn’t get a picture of their moves.

Our third performance of the season was our first ever Allred Family Holiday Music Review. This new idea for a Christmas tradition was met with a little resistance from a few individuals. But my family humors me (and responds to my threats and yelling) and got to work. At the performance, we learned that we didn’t work as much as we should. If you know our family at all (or if you have ever set near us at church during the hymns), you know that we are not musically inclined in the slightest. But where there is a desire, and a mom pushing you, there is a way. Our way was two simple songs (not silly!) performed by each person. 

Layla started us out with her rendition of Rudolph on the “flute”.

Perry sat at the piano and tickled the ivory’s while I played his favorite version of Here Comes Santa Clause on my phone. He sang along to the chorus. 

Kacin played Away in a Manger and Kyler shared Angels We Have Heard on High.

I muddled through O Holy Night.

Eric sang to us, twice.

Kyler and Kacin sang together.

I accompanied Layla on the piano while she sang Jingle Bells. But the best performance of the night was probably baby B on the bells.

The audience was captivated by all of the Christmas music that evening.

Well, between all the fighting and the mess ups in our music, it wasn’t a perfect evening by any means. But I’m so completely glad we did it! It helped us to learn some things and to fill our home with some more of those beautiful Christmas songs (no matter how poorly played the message of the songs was the same). And I think the more we do stuff like this the better. So Eric and I announced to the kids the next music review will be at the end of January (a Disney theme this time).