The Department of Theater Arts will present David Sedaris’ “The Santaland Diaries” as a fundraiser event on Dec. 19 at the W. Carroll Coyne Performing Arts Center. The one-man show is performed by Le Moyne acting/directing professor Matt Chiorini, who recently performed a three-week run in Nashville, Tenn. This upcoming event will count as his fifth run.
“It’s well-known and I’ve done it for over 100 performances,” said Chiorini, “so I thought it would be an easy night to put together at the Performing Arts Center.”
The event will help fund the spring NYC internship trip, the ACTF regional festival in January and other projects. The show itself is a comedy full of “dark, hilarious, sardonic, holiday humor.” Chiorini plays a man who takes on the role of Crumpet the Elf at Macy’s; as a result, he is forced to witness the actions of “nasty parents” and “Santas flirting with elves.”
“Crumpet is a bit of a sneaky bastard,” Chiorini said. “But he’s also very clever and fun to listen to. He’s hilarious and precise dissecting all these things he sees at the mall and he punctures the Christmas balloon in a really entertaining way.”
Chiorini insists that by no means is the show anti-Christmas.
“It denigrates commercialism, but not the holiday itself,” Chiorini pointed out. “The people satirized or mocked have it coming. ‘The Santaland Diaries’ is a great way to take the holiday apart that doesn’t cheapen it.”
“The Santaland Diaries” takes place Saturday, Dec. 19, at 8 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for the Le Moyne community. To reserve your tickets, call (315) 445-4523 or visit the PAC office.