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‘The Forgotten Carols’ Visits New Cities, with a New Actor!

Posted at 2:44 PM, Nov 09, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-09 16:44:39-05

The Forgotten Carols, a holiday season tradition marking its 27th year of consecutive performances, is coming to a town near you! This year`s tour includes 21 performances throughout Utah, Idaho, and Arizona. This season also features a new lead performer in the role of Connie Lou - veteran acclaimed performer Angela Jefferies.

Jefferies has performed in theaters throughout the U.S., including Utah, New Jersey, New York, and Texas, just to name a few. Some of her favorite roles include: Madame Defarge (A Tale of Two Cities), Annie (Annie Get Your Gun), The Lady of the Lake (Spamalot), and the Narrator (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat). She was a soloist at the world-famous Kennedy Center and enjoyed a long run as a featured performer on the Holland America Cruise Line.

"I`m absolutely thrilled to be performing in `The Forgotten Carols,'" said Jefferies.

Composer and writer Michael McLean`s original goal for `The Forgotten Carols` was to simply create a Christmas-themed collection of songs based around the 'forgotten' characters in the Nativity. 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 tradition for families.

Over the years, McLean`s modest one-man show has evolved into a huge theatrical production performed for more than a million people throughout the world.

"Connie Lou has become an absolutely iconic role thanks to Michael`s incredible story-telling and music," Jefferies said. Unlike most professional touring theatrical groups, each year local community and student choirs are invited to perform alongside the professional Forgotten Carol company members during the concerts in their cities. It`s important to McLean and the show's producers to preserve this tradition. In his words, it keeps the magic alive and makes for an enchanting experience each year.

"One of the great things about touring is seeing the familiar faces that have been coming for years as well as meeting new fans who become members of the Forgotten Carols family," shares McLean.

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
The Forgotten Carols stage performance tells the story of Connie Lou, a nurse whose empty life is changed when Uncle John, a new patient she is attending, recounts the story of Christ`s birth as told by little known characters in the nativity story. The accounts from the Innkeeper, the Shepherd and others help the nurse discover what the world has forgotten about Christmas, ultimately encouraging her to open her heart to the joy of this special season.