November 19, 2025 • 27 mins
We're entering into the most wonderful time of the year as the holiday season is finally upon us! Time to break out the lights, prepare the cookie dough, and crank up the Christmas music, as the holiday magic is awakening around us. Now, if you're anything like my family, Christmas time also means an overwhelming amount of Hallmark holiday movies on our television, each one cheesier than the last. It's in that vein that Tipping Point Theatre's latest show, A Very Northville Christmas, exists, bringing the eye-rolling romance and comedy of a made-for-TV holiday movie to their Northville stage! We spoke with director of A Very Northville Christmas, Dave Davies, and artistic director of Tipping Point Theatre, Julia Glander, about what audiences can expect from this holiday production!
In this exclusive Box Seat Babes interview, Dave Davies and Julia Glander discuss all the excitement that goes into bringing a show such as this back to their stage for a second time! With the theme of nostalgia tying this season together, how does A Very Northville Christmas fit in? How has Tipping Point Theatre brought the city of Northville into the show? Find out all those answers and more in this exciting interview!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Thank you so much for you two joining me today.
(00:01):
How are you two doing?
Hope everyone's going for it.
Yeah.
too polite here.
uh I'm feeling great, Brian.
How are you?
Doing all right, doing all right.
You guys ready for the holiday season?
We're kind of here.
We are.
have much of a choice, do we?
We better be ready.
I mean, this is...
so quick.
(00:21):
And it's also the perfect time because you guys are rolling out a very NorthvilleChristmas starting November 19th.
I mean, this is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season.
ah Dave, what is it kind of like to step back into the world uh of Christmas on stage?
It's, uh well with this particular show, it's a lot of fun.
(00:42):
I'd say I've done other Christmas shows before and I'm not calling specifics, but therehave been some that I haven't been real excited about.
this is, uh fortunately for me, it's one that I had a lot of fun with.
It's a fun script and it's...
What well the the thought of stepping back in and doing the same part was intriguing itsounded great uh This time I'm directing which is uh Personally, I think even more fun
(01:15):
right now because it's you get to do like you get to find all those little things that areuh That you didn't realize the first time around, you know
get to have your hands in everything.
Yeah, yeah, that's really it.
Yep.
And Julia, you had kind of mentioned when we talked about the season preview that this isone that like people who come to Tipping Point were very excited that it was coming back.
(01:38):
Yes, yes, it was a huge hit the first time, which was two years ago, my first season asartistic director.
And I don't know if I told you the story behind it, but Williamston Theatre had done itthe previous, in 2021, I believe, Williamston, a very Williamston Christmas, and the
(02:01):
playwright Robert Hallmark contacted me immediately in January and said, I don't know,
Here you are in this position and I think Northville would be the perfect setting for thisplay and I agreed.
So there we are.
So we did it in 2020, sorry, 2023.
(02:22):
You have to excuse me with numbers sometimes, I'm off.
So yes, I started in 2022.
So this was 2023 when we did A Very Northville Christmas.
Williamston brought it back to their stage last year and then we picked it up again thisyear.
is the same script pretty much, right?
Dave, it's the same script, but we've got changes.
(02:43):
Dave's been wonderful in creating some of, em even though it's the same script, somedifferent moments with it, and because we have uh a different cast this time, so it's
always gonna be new.
So even though it runs the same Hallmark holiday plot, you know,
(03:04):
big city gal, will she fall in love with the small town guy?
It also um has lots of opportunities for all of Dave's uh creativity.
So, yeah.
What I love about them saying Northville is the perfect city for this is because it'struly like a Hallmark movie when you walk down the main street and stuff like that, it
(03:27):
feels like you're stepping back into that feel, you know?
Yeah.
Yeah.
absolutely true.
In 2022, when we were doing...
not a very Northville Christmas, but It's a Wonderful Life, the live radio play.
I had some guests that came to the show and afterwards we went downtown to have dinner andit started to snow and the couple said, my gosh, this is like a Hallmark holiday movie.
(03:55):
And a week later was when I got the phone call from Williamston about doing the show.
Which that storyline that you just told is so like a Hallmark Hollywood movie.
I was just thinking Dave, was like, how much did she pay Hallmark to make it snow thatday?
Ha!
It was so beautiful.
(04:15):
And it was just the twinkly lights and the snow and everybody, you know, cheerful becausethey've all had wine to drink and it was fun.
yeah, Northville
is that small town that does have that feel where it's just like you, you you think aroundevery corner is gonna be Mary Tyler Moore throwing her hat in the air.
(04:36):
Just that kind of festiveness, happiness to it.
When I I had not actually been to Northville until I started working with tipping pointand
I didn't even know that this little town existed and when I walked in there I was like ifgives you like that Frankenmuth vibe, but like Like just that small town feeling you don't
get a lot of places around the metro Detroit area anymore
(04:58):
No.
You know, Dave, I think you should add that in the script.
Tossing that.
Ha ha ha ha!
All I can do is think about that now.
It's the perfect scene.
say this, I'm, what we've been do, we've been rehearsing and Julia's not even seen whatwe've been rehearsing yet, which I'm, oh, okay, yeah, that's right, yeah.
(05:23):
And I'm looking so forward to seeing it because it has been with a whole new cast,different approaches, we've kind of like, we're kind of really going through the script
and looking for all the little things and realizing
that like, my gosh, we've been saying it this way.
What if we said it this way instead?
(05:44):
would give the, and it's really uh finding, it's like you say, it's the same script, butit's, I feel as if, as fun and as good as that first run was, I think we've ramped up the
playfulness where it's maybe a little closer to like, um
(06:04):
uh a naked gun kind of thing where just the not to say it's gone that far but but i thinkthe um the the humor itself comes a little more rapid fire than than the previous run good
good good
truthfully, Dave, not trying to even butter you up or anything, but I feel like you arethe perfect person to be able to find some of those nuances and pull some of that humor
(06:28):
out of there or add different layers to it because you are so, you have so much humor andyou just, you love to laugh and to smile that it sounds like this is the perfect show for
you to really get your hands on and to run with it.
That's so kind, but it's like I told the cast, they're, you know, I'm just asking themquestions.
They're coming up with the ideas and then I'm claiming credit for them because I'm thedirector, so.
(06:53):
Absolutely, that's what you should always do.
Right?
Yeah, I'm riding their coattails and loving it.
So while this has, like you said, it's the same script and stuff, but you're really kindof making this a Northville Christmas, because this can be adapted from any uh cities and
stuff.
Dave, how are you pulling in Northville to kind of make it a story that's centric to thecity without, again, I don't want to spoil too much because I want people to see this and
(07:19):
experience it, but I'm just wondering how you're kind of doing that as you're developingit.
There's a lot of uh specifics that are generalized in the script, or should say a lot ofthe things that are generalized in the script, we are uh adding specifics to.
Instead of just going to a restaurant, they're going to this particular restaurant.
(07:41):
Instead of walking down a street, they're walking down this street.
and little landmarks where we can.
We're hitting as many Northville references as we can, but also to a point where
if you're not from Northville, you're not gonna be sitting in the audience going, I haveno idea what they're talking about.
(08:02):
This makes no sense to me.
It still has, but it's just got that kind of edge to it.
It's like when that rock star comes to town in the middle of one of their biggest hits,they go, hey, Detroit.
No one goes, yeah, Detroit.
You know, I was down at Heart Plaza.
my gosh, I know where that is.
uh You know, so it's that.
(08:23):
um
that kind of feeling where instead of just saying, going down the street, we can say,yeah, I was going down Griswold Street.
my gosh, that's right outside of the theater.
So there's a lot of little nuances like that, a lot of little uh winks to the audience umthat if you, without alienating everybody, that is correct, yeah.
(08:49):
No, in fact, Brian, um this is the producer side coming out, but um I'd say the way I'vesort of marketed this is that we celebrate, we spoof Northville and Hallmark holiday
movies with loads of humor and love.
because that's really what we're doing.
(09:09):
It's the combination of both.
And one thing I will add, again, promoting this, but I'm promoting Tipping Point andNorthville businesses, is that this play is the opportunity for um Northville businesses
to play a role in the play, because we've got lots of references um as part ofsponsorships.
(09:33):
So it gives them lots of advertising and um
Just a lot.
They're mentioned in the play.
They get to be on the program and the lobby screen and social media and the works.
It's tons for a really minimal amount.
a great point.
It is
like with the local businesses, it's almost like uh they get a commercial out of the dealbecause working in the names of the places, we've almost, for many of them, tweak the
(10:03):
script to where it becomes not just saying their name, it becomes...
an advertisement for them.
It's not just saying like, I you a coffee from Coffee Joe's or just using a fake name.
would be like, wow, this coffee's great, isn't it?
It's from Coffee Joe's.
That's where I get it all the time.
Like that kind of uh complimentary.
(10:27):
mention of local places and some of them I personally think are just very funny.
I've been watching the rehearsals watching the same thing over and like a five-year-oldevery time it happens I'm like laughing at the same thing.
Well, truthfully, that also feels very Hallmark too, because they have the coffee shopthat they're talking about.
They have the toy store.
(10:48):
They have the Christmas decoration place.
There's all of these very quintessential places that they stop at.
It seems like every Hallmark movie as they're celebrating.
that fits right in, and Northville gets to be a part of that.
Yes.
oh
how has Northville been responding to that?
Has there been a nice reception to that?
Yes, em yes, definitely.
(11:11):
it is a great opportunity.
We're going to have a lot of people coming through.
And em yes, the Northfield businesses that are participating, I don't want to give it allaway now either, because that is so joyful when they, you know,
get represented on stage in a really big way.
We've got some funny stuff and some new stuff in the script as well.
(11:34):
And thanks to Dave.
that's going to be a lot of fun.
um yeah, I think that, you know, and I don't know who knows if we'll do this again.
I don't know.
Maybe down the road.
um But um it's a great opportunity.
Yeah, I will say up front there's a great opportunity.
(11:58):
If there's a coffee shop out there, it's almost like we've got just a uh part in there.
It's like, well, okay, we're just gonna go with just coffee, just coffee from a coffeeshop.
It's like, man, someone could get their name in there and every performance, it'll come upin the whole room.
Here's it.
I will share this.
(12:19):
The mayor will be there, Mayor Turnbull will be there on opening night playing the mayor.
So we have some, and we'll have some other little guest appearances throughout that we'reexcited about.
um So, um yeah.
But good point, Dave, because we need a coffee shop, don't we?
(12:41):
Yeah, it would be nice to have a coffee shop in Northville.
You know.
So if you're a coffee shop in Northville, come on, reach out.
Yeah, or one other thing we needed was an Ann Arbor restaurant.
One Ann Arbor restaurant, we needed that.
if anybody from Ann Arbor is listening and wants to participate as a sponsor, you know,that would be great.
(13:04):
What else?
Any others that we really need?
Let me think.
And just to let them know, it's, don't know, how many performances are there of this showah altogether, Drew?
27, it's like buying 27 commercials on a television station.
But this is even more targeted because we've got a captive audience.
(13:27):
Yes, well 143 seats in the house.
you know, I'm not going to do the math right now.
I'm not good at that, but you get the idea.
Thank you, Dave.
But if you think about it, it's not even just advertising, with Northfield being such asmall little corner of the metropolitan area, you're walking out and you're right there.
(13:54):
You know what I mean?
Right across the street now is a donut shop.
There's all these different places where you're going to walk out, you can walk throughthat city and actually visit that place, which is...
Yeah.
much more than even just promoting your place.
Right, that's so true.
Yeah.
like, it's kind of reminiscent of those, know, when you get to the hotel room and you turnon the TV, there's the hotel's own channel, like, enjoy our amenities.
(14:20):
You know, we have a pool two floors below you.
Yeah, there you go, yeah.
So it kind of like it's a play and it has that element to it, like that kind of suggests,you know, after this matinee, why not go have dinner over here at this place, you know?
(14:40):
Yeah.
So have a two part question and Dave I'm gonna start with you.
why, know, the theme of this season is nostalgia.
So why do you feel like this show fits so well in with nostalgia, but also why do youthink continues to bring audiences in that they're asking for it for a second year?
Um.
The more successful shows have been like that.
think the nostalgia is that they enjoyed it so much the first time they want to relivethat experience.
(15:04):
know this just to digress for a second that the first show the theater ever did back inthe day was a show called Don't Dress for Dinner.
And um that was a big hit for the theater to the point where
They started the season, their first season with that show and ended the season andremounted that show as it was.
(15:29):
So it got kind of like two runs in its initial run and then brought it back another timeafter that, but.
Is it 10 at 10 year mark or 15?
Yeah, I think.
doing this Christmas show now.
ah But it's because you get people who enjoyed that experience so much.
(15:49):
They're still calling the theater asking for that show.
And I think this Christmas show is like that too, because it's just, it is one of thoseshows that a lot of shows people will see and maybe there's some that leave going like,
well, that wasn't really my cup of tea.
And other people will be like, that sang to me.
(16:11):
That was the best thing I've ever seen.
But it's kind of rare that a show comes along that's 100 % universal.
And...
I think this one is about as close as that as you can get.
The people who aren't enjoying it, we never want to see again.
No, that's not.
They won't be back.
(16:32):
Yeah, that's right.
They won't be missed.
Now, what I do think is just, it's that fun and that playful where uh it's got somethingfor everybody.
You're gonna find something in so many moments of this show that you're just gonna,they're just gonna make you laugh and they're just gonna make you smile.
That sounds hokey, but I swear it's true.
(16:54):
I swear it's true.
But like, is it hokey, like, what Christmas is about here?
Yeah, that's a good point too.
mean, it's, you know, it's, I know being my age, having grown up, like every year as akid.
you know, without the benefit of VCRs even, that it would be like, good, all the goodChristmas programs are coming back on.
(17:20):
I get to rewatch Rudolph and Year Without a Santa Claus and Little Drummer Boy and all thecartoons, how the Grinch stole Christmas.
You know, they would just run them like that once a year.
So you'd only have, that was almost like a gift in itself to be able to uh see those eachyear.
And that's, I think a big part of the nostalgia
(17:42):
that Christmas brings is it's why people decorate their homes and all that.
It's like they look forward to that holiday spirit that visits once a year.
You know, I don't know how long uh Meadowbrook has been doing Christmas Carol every year.
And it's like, because it's successful.
People want to see it.
They want that.
(18:03):
And this is...
uh
in essence has the possibility of becoming that kind of tradition for tipping point, youknow?
Yeah.
So, Brian, it's tradition.
All those things that Dave just mentioned becomes part of, whether it's a familytradition, whether it's a friend's tradition, it's our comfort food, right?
(18:31):
It's all those things.
And it's interesting because people kind of fall in different...
Something for everyone is something that when I am trying to figure out what to do for aseason and in that process where I'm curating what to do.
That is something that I always think of.
(18:53):
can't please everybody with every show, but I can usually try and find something foreveryone.
This show, what Dave was saying, has something for everyone.
And there's people who love to watch.
the Christmas shows over and over again or have the same.
I'm the opposite.
Once I've seen a show, I am happy with that and I will watch it maybe 10 years later,maybe, maybe, but maybe not.
(19:22):
the interesting thing about it though is that this, because I love the change up, I loveseeing it once and then I love to see the next part.
you know, what's the process the next time?
So that's just my brain.
We have this in my family, because, you know, my husband loves to watch It's a WonderfulLife every year, and I usually find something else to do in that moment, and even for
(19:46):
those two hours, and not because I don't enjoy it, I do, but I know it already.
So my brain is going quicker than what I'm visually taking in.
you know, I, so for,
It's interesting, I'm even laughing that nostalgia came out of and became sort of thetheme for this um because I had to wait until I had all the shows in place and I was
(20:13):
looking at it, wow, there's some nostalgic elements in all of it.
And so that's where that came from.
um But you know, all that nostalgia stuff has a lot of benefits and.
um
And it's really great for this time of year as well because it helps us, you know, getthrough and move through and find joy again.
(20:36):
So I think it's really important.
One of the things I love about you, Julia, so much is that my next question was going tobe, you had talked about it being a, people mentioning it being like a traditional almost
now at tipping point to come to this show.
And so I had it marked down and you brought it right back up for me.
I don't even have to do, you did, but that's good.
(20:56):
Cause like you said, you're always thinking ahead, which is like, you're predicting bothit's a wonderful life and my questions.
No, no, but truthfully, I think that you're right that like this is
something that goes into tradition of not even just for the show, but like the holidaysare full of them.
know, people have things that they do with their family.
Going to see a show, I mean, from when I was a young kid, I remember my mom would take usto see the Rockettes when they visited, you know, the Fox Theater as a kid.
(21:22):
And so like, even though I haven't seen a Northville Christmas, this is already hittingnostalgic factors for me because it reminds me of that same experience I grew up on.
Yes.
and I think it hits those.
those Christmas tropes real well.
you know, the things that everyone's gonna recognize, not just from Hallmark movies, butelements of so many different Christmas movies.
(21:47):
ah You know, the nod to a Christmas carol where it's like someone's heart needs to bemelted so they can find the true meaning of Christmas and you know, that kind of thing,
but, and really utilizes.
uh
those elements, know, everyone's gonna have those, oh, I recognize what's going on here,moments in the show.
(22:12):
mean, that's important though, too, because again, that makes your heart feel all fuzzyand warm.
As long as you have hot chocolate at that point, you're good, right?
That's it, yep.
This show is hot cocoa for the soul.
I love that you should put that on a banner or a t-shirt That's it Um Yeah, when youfinally get the coffee shop you need to put that in there be like, yeah, it's like hot
(22:38):
cocoa for the soul But it's So so with this pulling from so many different like kind ofChristmas themes and Christmas tropes and
kind of all of those warm and fuzzy feelings.
Dave, what really stands out to you about the theme of the show that like seems toresonate the most with you at this time?
Uh, about this time of year?
(22:59):
That's
gotta confess, I don't know if there's anything that stands out.
that's particularly Christmas overall.
You know, mean, it's clearly it's a Christmas story.
It's got Christmas elements.
But I think ah what stands out to me is certainly the comedy.
It's just...
uh
(23:20):
Yeah, I just love how it's how playful and joyful it is um and the the love story behindit I think there's as silly as it gets at moments.
There's there's a really beautiful ah little love story going on that You know that theythey land well in their own reality the characters do and you really do find yourself
(23:44):
rooting for them like seeing these like you know these these missed opportunities whereit's like
Oh, they could have got together then if they just, you know, it's one of the stories.
Like I've been saying that,
during rehearsal, it's like maybe two characters will start to go in and it's like, andthat's when this one comes in and interrupts and pointing out like, if you don't interrupt
(24:06):
them, the play's gonna end right there because that's the goal.
So it's like, we have to keep interrupting them and finding ways to avoid them gettingtogether.
And it starts to get deeper as to the obstacles in their way, but...
But that's what it, like with a lot of movies or TV shows, you're gonna have the audiencethinking, oh, that's gonna divide them further.
(24:32):
We have to get them together somehow and rooting for them.
And I think uh how it weaves its way about that is uh silly in a very lovely way.
I was gonna say, can already picture audiences responding with like gasps and groansalmost, being like, they almost kissed, you know, like, it was almost there, we almost had
(24:55):
it.
Yeah, yeah, it's that remains the day kind of, you know.
you know, and in all honesty, um we're a very Northville Christmas.
You're not coming to see it for the plot.
You're not, because it is a standard.
It's a, what am I trying to say?
(25:17):
But it's a standard plot that we play.
But what you're coming for is the hope for love.
no matter what, you know, the hope for love, the joy that that brings, um you know, andthat something could go wrong.
And it does.
And life isn't perfect.
And it shows in the script.
It's all of that.
So it's the imperfections um in a perfect world, you know.
(25:43):
So.
we've added two car chases.
No, that's not true.
That's not true.
We got one Tokyo Drift.
Yeah.
It was a feat to get them in the door that, yeah.
there's a Netflix Christmas movie coming out this year that's about two Jewel Heists.
you know, so the fact that you just said that, mean, anything's possible around Christmasapparently.
(26:08):
That's right.
We really pay tribute to Die Hard, which when you come down to it, everyone's favoriteChristmas movie.
Uh oh, am I gonna get in trouble for saying I've never seen Die Hard?
Do I need- is that a pre-requisite for coming to the show?
No, I'm just kidding.
you in trouble, but I honestly I envy you because that's one of those movies I wish Icould see you for the first time all over again
(26:28):
Yeah.
I want to thank you so much for the two of you being here and for talking about NorthvilleChristmas.
We are so excited to see it.
ah But thank you for chatting about it and we look forward to a good run for it.
Oh, Brian, thank you so much.
I have to say my cheeks are hurting from smiling right now.
My cheeks are hurting from sitting.
(26:49):
oh
prepared my cheeks because I knew Dave was going to be here.
I said last time, I hurt for days after laughing so hard.
So I had to do some exercises.
know, here we go.
my cheeks are hurting from sitting on them so long so that's yeah hey Brian I I hope tosee at the theater I hope you're able to make it I think you'll you'll really dig it thank
(27:17):
you kindly uh yeah so great to see you buddy
A Very Northville Christmas arrives at the Tipping Point Theatre on November 19th and runsthrough December 21st, so get your tickets now from the box office or their website, and
we'll see you at the show!
Thank you so much for you two joining me today.
(00:01):
How are you two doing?
Hope everyone's going for it.
Yeah.
too polite here.
uh I'm feeling great, Brian.
How are you?
Doing all right, doing all right.
You guys ready for the holiday season?
We're kind of here.
We are.
have much of a choice, do we?
We better be ready.
I mean, this is...
so quick.
(00:21):
And it's also the perfect time because you guys are rolling out a very NorthvilleChristmas starting November 19th.
I mean, this is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season.
ah Dave, what is it kind of like to step back into the world uh of Christmas on stage?
It's, uh well with this particular show, it's a lot of fun.
(00:42):
I'd say I've done other Christmas shows before and I'm not calling specifics, but therehave been some that I haven't been real excited about.
this is, uh fortunately for me, it's one that I had a lot of fun with.
It's a fun script and it's...
What well the the thought of stepping back in and doing the same part was intriguing itsounded great uh This time I'm directing which is uh Personally, I think even more fun
(01:15):
right now because it's you get to do like you get to find all those little things that areuh That you didn't realize the first time around, you know
get to have your hands in everything.
Yeah, yeah, that's really it.
Yep.
And Julia, you had kind of mentioned when we talked about the season preview that this isone that like people who come to Tipping Point were very excited that it was coming back.
(01:38):
Yes, yes, it was a huge hit the first time, which was two years ago, my first season asartistic director.
And I don't know if I told you the story behind it, but Williamston Theatre had done itthe previous, in 2021, I believe, Williamston, a very Williamston Christmas, and the
(02:01):
playwright Robert Hallmark contacted me immediately in January and said, I don't know,
Here you are in this position and I think Northville would be the perfect setting for thisplay and I agreed.
So there we are.
So we did it in 2020, sorry, 2023.
(02:22):
You have to excuse me with numbers sometimes, I'm off.
So yes, I started in 2022.
So this was 2023 when we did A Very Northville Christmas.
Williamston brought it back to their stage last year and then we picked it up again thisyear.
is the same script pretty much, right?
Dave, it's the same script, but we've got changes.
(02:43):
Dave's been wonderful in creating some of, em even though it's the same script, somedifferent moments with it, and because we have uh a different cast this time, so it's
always gonna be new.
So even though it runs the same Hallmark holiday plot, you know,
(03:04):
big city gal, will she fall in love with the small town guy?
It also um has lots of opportunities for all of Dave's uh creativity.
So, yeah.
What I love about them saying Northville is the perfect city for this is because it'struly like a Hallmark movie when you walk down the main street and stuff like that, it
(03:27):
feels like you're stepping back into that feel, you know?
Yeah.
Yeah.
absolutely true.
In 2022, when we were doing...
not a very Northville Christmas, but It's a Wonderful Life, the live radio play.
I had some guests that came to the show and afterwards we went downtown to have dinner andit started to snow and the couple said, my gosh, this is like a Hallmark holiday movie.
(03:55):
And a week later was when I got the phone call from Williamston about doing the show.
Which that storyline that you just told is so like a Hallmark Hollywood movie.
I was just thinking Dave, was like, how much did she pay Hallmark to make it snow thatday?
Ha!
It was so beautiful.
(04:15):
And it was just the twinkly lights and the snow and everybody, you know, cheerful becausethey've all had wine to drink and it was fun.
yeah, Northville
is that small town that does have that feel where it's just like you, you you think aroundevery corner is gonna be Mary Tyler Moore throwing her hat in the air.
(04:36):
Just that kind of festiveness, happiness to it.
When I I had not actually been to Northville until I started working with tipping pointand
I didn't even know that this little town existed and when I walked in there I was like ifgives you like that Frankenmuth vibe, but like Like just that small town feeling you don't
get a lot of places around the metro Detroit area anymore
(04:58):
No.
You know, Dave, I think you should add that in the script.
Tossing that.
Ha ha ha ha!
All I can do is think about that now.
It's the perfect scene.
say this, I'm, what we've been do, we've been rehearsing and Julia's not even seen whatwe've been rehearsing yet, which I'm, oh, okay, yeah, that's right, yeah.
(05:23):
And I'm looking so forward to seeing it because it has been with a whole new cast,different approaches, we've kind of like, we're kind of really going through the script
and looking for all the little things and realizing
that like, my gosh, we've been saying it this way.
What if we said it this way instead?
(05:44):
would give the, and it's really uh finding, it's like you say, it's the same script, butit's, I feel as if, as fun and as good as that first run was, I think we've ramped up the
playfulness where it's maybe a little closer to like, um
(06:04):
uh a naked gun kind of thing where just the not to say it's gone that far but but i thinkthe um the the humor itself comes a little more rapid fire than than the previous run good
good good
truthfully, Dave, not trying to even butter you up or anything, but I feel like you arethe perfect person to be able to find some of those nuances and pull some of that humor
(06:28):
out of there or add different layers to it because you are so, you have so much humor andyou just, you love to laugh and to smile that it sounds like this is the perfect show for
you to really get your hands on and to run with it.
That's so kind, but it's like I told the cast, they're, you know, I'm just asking themquestions.
They're coming up with the ideas and then I'm claiming credit for them because I'm thedirector, so.
(06:53):
Absolutely, that's what you should always do.
Right?
Yeah, I'm riding their coattails and loving it.
So while this has, like you said, it's the same script and stuff, but you're really kindof making this a Northville Christmas, because this can be adapted from any uh cities and
stuff.
Dave, how are you pulling in Northville to kind of make it a story that's centric to thecity without, again, I don't want to spoil too much because I want people to see this and
(07:19):
experience it, but I'm just wondering how you're kind of doing that as you're developingit.
There's a lot of uh specifics that are generalized in the script, or should say a lot ofthe things that are generalized in the script, we are uh adding specifics to.
Instead of just going to a restaurant, they're going to this particular restaurant.
(07:41):
Instead of walking down a street, they're walking down this street.
and little landmarks where we can.
We're hitting as many Northville references as we can, but also to a point where
if you're not from Northville, you're not gonna be sitting in the audience going, I haveno idea what they're talking about.
(08:02):
This makes no sense to me.
It still has, but it's just got that kind of edge to it.
It's like when that rock star comes to town in the middle of one of their biggest hits,they go, hey, Detroit.
No one goes, yeah, Detroit.
You know, I was down at Heart Plaza.
my gosh, I know where that is.
uh You know, so it's that.
(08:23):
um
that kind of feeling where instead of just saying, going down the street, we can say,yeah, I was going down Griswold Street.
my gosh, that's right outside of the theater.
So there's a lot of little nuances like that, a lot of little uh winks to the audience umthat if you, without alienating everybody, that is correct, yeah.
(08:49):
No, in fact, Brian, um this is the producer side coming out, but um I'd say the way I'vesort of marketed this is that we celebrate, we spoof Northville and Hallmark holiday
movies with loads of humor and love.
because that's really what we're doing.
(09:09):
It's the combination of both.
And one thing I will add, again, promoting this, but I'm promoting Tipping Point andNorthville businesses, is that this play is the opportunity for um Northville businesses
to play a role in the play, because we've got lots of references um as part ofsponsorships.
(09:33):
So it gives them lots of advertising and um
Just a lot.
They're mentioned in the play.
They get to be on the program and the lobby screen and social media and the works.
It's tons for a really minimal amount.
a great point.
It is
like with the local businesses, it's almost like uh they get a commercial out of the dealbecause working in the names of the places, we've almost, for many of them, tweak the
(10:03):
script to where it becomes not just saying their name, it becomes...
an advertisement for them.
It's not just saying like, I you a coffee from Coffee Joe's or just using a fake name.
would be like, wow, this coffee's great, isn't it?
It's from Coffee Joe's.
That's where I get it all the time.
Like that kind of uh complimentary.
(10:27):
mention of local places and some of them I personally think are just very funny.
I've been watching the rehearsals watching the same thing over and like a five-year-oldevery time it happens I'm like laughing at the same thing.
Well, truthfully, that also feels very Hallmark too, because they have the coffee shopthat they're talking about.
They have the toy store.
(10:48):
They have the Christmas decoration place.
There's all of these very quintessential places that they stop at.
It seems like every Hallmark movie as they're celebrating.
that fits right in, and Northville gets to be a part of that.
Yes.
oh
how has Northville been responding to that?
Has there been a nice reception to that?
Yes, em yes, definitely.
(11:11):
it is a great opportunity.
We're going to have a lot of people coming through.
And em yes, the Northfield businesses that are participating, I don't want to give it allaway now either, because that is so joyful when they, you know,
get represented on stage in a really big way.
We've got some funny stuff and some new stuff in the script as well.
(11:34):
And thanks to Dave.
that's going to be a lot of fun.
um yeah, I think that, you know, and I don't know who knows if we'll do this again.
I don't know.
Maybe down the road.
um But um it's a great opportunity.
Yeah, I will say up front there's a great opportunity.
(11:58):
If there's a coffee shop out there, it's almost like we've got just a uh part in there.
It's like, well, okay, we're just gonna go with just coffee, just coffee from a coffeeshop.
It's like, man, someone could get their name in there and every performance, it'll come upin the whole room.
Here's it.
I will share this.
(12:19):
The mayor will be there, Mayor Turnbull will be there on opening night playing the mayor.
So we have some, and we'll have some other little guest appearances throughout that we'reexcited about.
um So, um yeah.
But good point, Dave, because we need a coffee shop, don't we?
(12:41):
Yeah, it would be nice to have a coffee shop in Northville.
You know.
So if you're a coffee shop in Northville, come on, reach out.
Yeah, or one other thing we needed was an Ann Arbor restaurant.
One Ann Arbor restaurant, we needed that.
if anybody from Ann Arbor is listening and wants to participate as a sponsor, you know,that would be great.
(13:04):
What else?
Any others that we really need?
Let me think.
And just to let them know, it's, don't know, how many performances are there of this showah altogether, Drew?
27, it's like buying 27 commercials on a television station.
But this is even more targeted because we've got a captive audience.
(13:27):
Yes, well 143 seats in the house.
you know, I'm not going to do the math right now.
I'm not good at that, but you get the idea.
Thank you, Dave.
But if you think about it, it's not even just advertising, with Northfield being such asmall little corner of the metropolitan area, you're walking out and you're right there.
(13:54):
You know what I mean?
Right across the street now is a donut shop.
There's all these different places where you're going to walk out, you can walk throughthat city and actually visit that place, which is...
Yeah.
much more than even just promoting your place.
Right, that's so true.
Yeah.
like, it's kind of reminiscent of those, know, when you get to the hotel room and you turnon the TV, there's the hotel's own channel, like, enjoy our amenities.
(14:20):
You know, we have a pool two floors below you.
Yeah, there you go, yeah.
So it kind of like it's a play and it has that element to it, like that kind of suggests,you know, after this matinee, why not go have dinner over here at this place, you know?
(14:40):
Yeah.
So have a two part question and Dave I'm gonna start with you.
why, know, the theme of this season is nostalgia.
So why do you feel like this show fits so well in with nostalgia, but also why do youthink continues to bring audiences in that they're asking for it for a second year?
Um.
The more successful shows have been like that.
think the nostalgia is that they enjoyed it so much the first time they want to relivethat experience.
(15:04):
know this just to digress for a second that the first show the theater ever did back inthe day was a show called Don't Dress for Dinner.
And um that was a big hit for the theater to the point where
They started the season, their first season with that show and ended the season andremounted that show as it was.
(15:29):
So it got kind of like two runs in its initial run and then brought it back another timeafter that, but.
Is it 10 at 10 year mark or 15?
Yeah, I think.
doing this Christmas show now.
ah But it's because you get people who enjoyed that experience so much.
(15:49):
They're still calling the theater asking for that show.
And I think this Christmas show is like that too, because it's just, it is one of thoseshows that a lot of shows people will see and maybe there's some that leave going like,
well, that wasn't really my cup of tea.
And other people will be like, that sang to me.
(16:11):
That was the best thing I've ever seen.
But it's kind of rare that a show comes along that's 100 % universal.
And...
I think this one is about as close as that as you can get.
The people who aren't enjoying it, we never want to see again.
No, that's not.
They won't be back.
(16:32):
Yeah, that's right.
They won't be missed.
Now, what I do think is just, it's that fun and that playful where uh it's got somethingfor everybody.
You're gonna find something in so many moments of this show that you're just gonna,they're just gonna make you laugh and they're just gonna make you smile.
That sounds hokey, but I swear it's true.
(16:54):
I swear it's true.
But like, is it hokey, like, what Christmas is about here?
Yeah, that's a good point too.
mean, it's, you know, it's, I know being my age, having grown up, like every year as akid.
you know, without the benefit of VCRs even, that it would be like, good, all the goodChristmas programs are coming back on.
(17:20):
I get to rewatch Rudolph and Year Without a Santa Claus and Little Drummer Boy and all thecartoons, how the Grinch stole Christmas.
You know, they would just run them like that once a year.
So you'd only have, that was almost like a gift in itself to be able to uh see those eachyear.
And that's, I think a big part of the nostalgia
(17:42):
that Christmas brings is it's why people decorate their homes and all that.
It's like they look forward to that holiday spirit that visits once a year.
You know, I don't know how long uh Meadowbrook has been doing Christmas Carol every year.
And it's like, because it's successful.
People want to see it.
They want that.
(18:03):
And this is...
uh
in essence has the possibility of becoming that kind of tradition for tipping point, youknow?
Yeah.
So, Brian, it's tradition.
All those things that Dave just mentioned becomes part of, whether it's a familytradition, whether it's a friend's tradition, it's our comfort food, right?
(18:31):
It's all those things.
And it's interesting because people kind of fall in different...
Something for everyone is something that when I am trying to figure out what to do for aseason and in that process where I'm curating what to do.
That is something that I always think of.
(18:53):
can't please everybody with every show, but I can usually try and find something foreveryone.
This show, what Dave was saying, has something for everyone.
And there's people who love to watch.
the Christmas shows over and over again or have the same.
I'm the opposite.
Once I've seen a show, I am happy with that and I will watch it maybe 10 years later,maybe, maybe, but maybe not.
(19:22):
the interesting thing about it though is that this, because I love the change up, I loveseeing it once and then I love to see the next part.
you know, what's the process the next time?
So that's just my brain.
We have this in my family, because, you know, my husband loves to watch It's a WonderfulLife every year, and I usually find something else to do in that moment, and even for
(19:46):
those two hours, and not because I don't enjoy it, I do, but I know it already.
So my brain is going quicker than what I'm visually taking in.
you know, I, so for,
It's interesting, I'm even laughing that nostalgia came out of and became sort of thetheme for this um because I had to wait until I had all the shows in place and I was
(20:13):
looking at it, wow, there's some nostalgic elements in all of it.
And so that's where that came from.
um But you know, all that nostalgia stuff has a lot of benefits and.
um
And it's really great for this time of year as well because it helps us, you know, getthrough and move through and find joy again.
(20:36):
So I think it's really important.
One of the things I love about you, Julia, so much is that my next question was going tobe, you had talked about it being a, people mentioning it being like a traditional almost
now at tipping point to come to this show.
And so I had it marked down and you brought it right back up for me.
I don't even have to do, you did, but that's good.
(20:56):
Cause like you said, you're always thinking ahead, which is like, you're predicting bothit's a wonderful life and my questions.
No, no, but truthfully, I think that you're right that like this is
something that goes into tradition of not even just for the show, but like the holidaysare full of them.
know, people have things that they do with their family.
Going to see a show, I mean, from when I was a young kid, I remember my mom would take usto see the Rockettes when they visited, you know, the Fox Theater as a kid.
(21:22):
And so like, even though I haven't seen a Northville Christmas, this is already hittingnostalgic factors for me because it reminds me of that same experience I grew up on.
Yes.
and I think it hits those.
those Christmas tropes real well.
you know, the things that everyone's gonna recognize, not just from Hallmark movies, butelements of so many different Christmas movies.
(21:47):
ah You know, the nod to a Christmas carol where it's like someone's heart needs to bemelted so they can find the true meaning of Christmas and you know, that kind of thing,
but, and really utilizes.
uh
those elements, know, everyone's gonna have those, oh, I recognize what's going on here,moments in the show.
(22:12):
mean, that's important though, too, because again, that makes your heart feel all fuzzyand warm.
As long as you have hot chocolate at that point, you're good, right?
That's it, yep.
This show is hot cocoa for the soul.
I love that you should put that on a banner or a t-shirt That's it Um Yeah, when youfinally get the coffee shop you need to put that in there be like, yeah, it's like hot
(22:38):
cocoa for the soul But it's So so with this pulling from so many different like kind ofChristmas themes and Christmas tropes and
kind of all of those warm and fuzzy feelings.
Dave, what really stands out to you about the theme of the show that like seems toresonate the most with you at this time?
Uh, about this time of year?
(22:59):
That's
gotta confess, I don't know if there's anything that stands out.
that's particularly Christmas overall.
You know, mean, it's clearly it's a Christmas story.
It's got Christmas elements.
But I think ah what stands out to me is certainly the comedy.
It's just...
uh
(23:20):
Yeah, I just love how it's how playful and joyful it is um and the the love story behindit I think there's as silly as it gets at moments.
There's there's a really beautiful ah little love story going on that You know that theythey land well in their own reality the characters do and you really do find yourself
(23:44):
rooting for them like seeing these like you know these these missed opportunities whereit's like
Oh, they could have got together then if they just, you know, it's one of the stories.
Like I've been saying that,
during rehearsal, it's like maybe two characters will start to go in and it's like, andthat's when this one comes in and interrupts and pointing out like, if you don't interrupt
(24:06):
them, the play's gonna end right there because that's the goal.
So it's like, we have to keep interrupting them and finding ways to avoid them gettingtogether.
And it starts to get deeper as to the obstacles in their way, but...
But that's what it, like with a lot of movies or TV shows, you're gonna have the audiencethinking, oh, that's gonna divide them further.
(24:32):
We have to get them together somehow and rooting for them.
And I think uh how it weaves its way about that is uh silly in a very lovely way.
I was gonna say, can already picture audiences responding with like gasps and groansalmost, being like, they almost kissed, you know, like, it was almost there, we almost had
(24:55):
it.
Yeah, yeah, it's that remains the day kind of, you know.
you know, and in all honesty, um we're a very Northville Christmas.
You're not coming to see it for the plot.
You're not, because it is a standard.
It's a, what am I trying to say?
(25:17):
But it's a standard plot that we play.
But what you're coming for is the hope for love.
no matter what, you know, the hope for love, the joy that that brings, um you know, andthat something could go wrong.
And it does.
And life isn't perfect.
And it shows in the script.
It's all of that.
So it's the imperfections um in a perfect world, you know.
(25:43):
So.
we've added two car chases.
No, that's not true.
That's not true.
We got one Tokyo Drift.
Yeah.
It was a feat to get them in the door that, yeah.
there's a Netflix Christmas movie coming out this year that's about two Jewel Heists.
you know, so the fact that you just said that, mean, anything's possible around Christmasapparently.
(26:08):
That's right.
We really pay tribute to Die Hard, which when you come down to it, everyone's favoriteChristmas movie.
Uh oh, am I gonna get in trouble for saying I've never seen Die Hard?
Do I need- is that a pre-requisite for coming to the show?
No, I'm just kidding.
you in trouble, but I honestly I envy you because that's one of those movies I wish Icould see you for the first time all over again
(26:28):
Yeah.
I want to thank you so much for the two of you being here and for talking about NorthvilleChristmas.
We are so excited to see it.
ah But thank you for chatting about it and we look forward to a good run for it.
Oh, Brian, thank you so much.
I have to say my cheeks are hurting from smiling right now.
My cheeks are hurting from sitting.
(26:49):
oh
prepared my cheeks because I knew Dave was going to be here.
I said last time, I hurt for days after laughing so hard.
So I had to do some exercises.
know, here we go.
my cheeks are hurting from sitting on them so long so that's yeah hey Brian I I hope tosee at the theater I hope you're able to make it I think you'll you'll really dig it thank
(27:17):
you kindly uh yeah so great to see you buddy
A Very Northville Christmas arrives at the Tipping Point Theatre on November 19th and runsthrough December 21st, so get your tickets now from the box office or their website, and
we'll see you at the show!
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