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Forever Plaid is dedicated to the "good guys"; to the guys who wheeled the projector carts for the AV club; to the guys who saved their allowance to give their parents a special night on the town for their anniversary; to the guys who carried an extra handkerchief; to the guys who never went beyond first base, and if they did, they didn't tell anyone. We Salute You!
From the Playwright...
For those of you who have never seen Forever Plaid, we've included notes from the original production - it's good back-story. For those of you who have seen PLAID, I sincerely want to take this opportunity to say, "Thank you for coming back and sharing your very precious time with us."
For over a decade, I resisted creating a holiday sequel based on FOREVER PLAID. I was stubborn about it. Sequels are for movies like – RAMBO, LORD OF THE RINGS, HOME ALONE, LEGALLY BLONDE, INDIANA JONES, HARRY POTTER etc. I tried to explain this when I was approached to create a "follow up" to FP. (Can you imagine – PLAID ALONE TWO, LEGALLY PLAID, SPARKY POTTER AND THE CUMMERBUND OF FIRE, THE LORD OF THE PLAIDS, INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF PLAID???)
However, right after 9/11, I was approached by the PASADENA PLAYHOUSE to create a Holiday edition of PLAID. It was at a time when we all needed a little joy and a little cozy Holiday fun to lift spirits. FOREVER PLAID has been embraced by many wonderful communities, so I attempted to create a little Holiday Party of Plaid for the Playhouse. After the first year of the show, various other theatres asked if they could do PLAID TIDINGS. Over the past few years the show has evolved to what you are going to experience tonight ( or this Afternoon).
Each year brings its share of joys and tribulations for the world, our country and our loved ones. Here's hoping a little toasty, cozy, musical, holiday cheer will put you in the mood to appreciate all the good stuff that is always around us.
Video Warning
In accordance with the Performance License, you MUST include the following warning in all programs and in a pre-show announcement:ANY VIDEO AND/OR AUDIO RECORDING OF THIS PRODUCTION IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
Included Materials
| Item | Quantity Included |
|---|---|
| ERRATA LIST | 1 |
| LIBRETTO/VOCAL BOOK | 8 |
| PIANO CONDUCTOR'S SCORE | 2 |
| VIDEO CONVERSATIONPIECE | 1 |
Production Resources
| Resource |
|---|
| HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON-10/CS |
| LOGO PACK |
| LOGO PACK DIGITAL |
| PRODUCTIONPRO-DIGITAL SCRIPT/SCORE |
| STAGE WRITE APPLICATION |
| TRANSPOSITIONS-ON-DEMAND |
STANDARD ORCHESTRATION
| Instrumentation | Doubling |
|---|---|
| BASS |
Full Synopsis
Act One
With an "Opening Fanfare," the classic set for Forever Plaid is revealed. The soft glow of the moon illuminates four microphones covered with pale blue cloths. The Piano Player enters, bows and begins to play. Through the loudspeakers, the Voice Over recaps the Plaids' untimely demise. Their silhouettes cross the moon, then slide back down to Earth. The Plaids are returning!
With a crash of thunder, Sparky, Jinx, Smudge and Frankie enter from the back of the theatre. They carry candles and chant as they make their way onstage ("Deus Ex Plaid"). The Plaids are surprised to be back on Earth, but know that, as the celestial Guardians of Harmony, they must have been sent back on a very special mission – a mission so secret that they don't even know what it is. Undaunted, they decide to do what they do best: a show! They introduce themselves and the band, then begin ("Strangers in Paradise").
Thinking that their mission may be to bring selfless love back to the world, the Plaids launch into song ("Amor / Hallelujah"). The boys are confused. They ask the audience who remembers them from their last concert. Noticing some new faces in the audience, they give a rundown of their greatest hits ("Holiday for Plaids"). To boost their confidence, they decide to do things the "good ol' way" and take out toilet plungers to use as microphones for "Sh-Boom."
There is a clap of thunder, and the boys are overtaken with the Christmas spirit. They sing a wild medley of holiday hits ("A Psycho Christmas"). Overwhelmed by the frenzy, Jinx gets a nosebleed, and Frankie has an asthma attack. Sparky escorts them offstage, leaving Smudge alone. Smudge recalls the joy that he and the other Plaids felt, watching Christmas specials on TV as children. He reveals that one of the Plaid's greatest dreams was to have their own Holiday Special ("The Most Wonderful Time / Merry Christmas").
Sparky returns with Jinx and Frankie, and the four Plaids sing "Besame Mucho / Kiss of Fire," with Jinx singing lead. Jinx becomes tangled in his mic cord and almost rolls offstage. As the song comes to a close, Jinx is suddenly possessed by the spirit of Christmas. Unable to stop himself, he bursts into a hearty rendition of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town." The Plaids believe that these thoughts of Christmas are distracting them from discovering the true reason that they have returned to Earth.
There is another clap of thunder, and a note from Rosemary Clooney drifts down from heaven. Rosie gives the boys a clue about their mission: They must "spread their mirth in this cool season" and bring "a festive song of celebration" and joy to the world. They misinterpret this and think that it has something to do with one of Rosie's famous hits ("Mambo Italiano").
Jinx gags, and another clue comes out of his mouth that encourages them to sing a song that helps people remember what's dear to them. They sing "Hey There." It doesn't work. A new clue leads the Plaids astray again ("Fever").
A cell phone rings in the audience, and Sparky answers it. It's Rosemary Clooney! She tells them to "rearrange the clues in a Jack Frost way." Suddenly, the boys get it. They sing to Rosie over the phone ("The Christmas Song"). When they finish, the stage has been decorated with mistletoe. They realize that they've been sent to fulfill the needs of the holiday season by putting on a holiday show. They sing another medley of Christmas and Chanukah classics, followed by a calypso number ("Holiday Catering Drill," "Christmas Calypso"). The Plaids work the audience, encouraging them to sing along. With a thunderclap, the Plaids send the audience out for Intermission.
Act Two
The set has been decorated with a few large ornaments. The Plaids wear new outfits: cherry red cardigans, pink button-down shirts, plaid ties and pants in dark green and black. They are excited to share their holiday spirit with the audience – Christmas, Chanukah, Ramadan, Kwanza – they love it all ("Holiday Talk." "Cool Yule".
The Piano Player needs his union break and leaves. Sparky, Jinx and Smudge leave to get him. While they're gone, Frankie tries to sing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" a cappella, but can't get through it due to his nerves. He reveals that he's always been inspired by Rudolph... and a little terrified by Frosty the Snow Man.
There is yet another clap of thunder, followed by sheet music dropping from the sky. The other Plaids return. Frankie begins to sing what is on the page as a hip-hop bassline kicks in ("Twuz the Nite B4"). Frankie gets really "street" as his gets down, amazing the other Plaids. Together, they recount the Night Before Christmas story... "old skool."
The Piano Player is still missing. Sparky decides that he will play the piano while Smudge sings lead ("Let It Snow"). The Piano Player returns to play "Carol of the Bells." A woman from the audience is selected to help the Plaids play "Joy to the World" on the handbells, followed by "Mr. Santa," played to the tune of "Mr. Sandman." They give the audience member a prize package, and she returns to her seat.
Sparky tells a tale that he holds dear to his heart – the story of the Christmas Cardigan – about how the Plaids nearly came to sing backup for Perry Como and ended up with his Christmas Cardigan ("Mambo in a Winter Wonderland," "Swell Backups"). Using a video of Perry Como singing "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas," the Plaids fulfill their dream of singing backup for Mr. Como.
Next, the Plaids do a condensed version of "The Ed Sullivan Christmas Show" ("Ed Sullivan / I'll Be Home for Christmas"). An Usher appears from the audience with a package for the Plaids. Inside are Santa Hats and a TV Holiday Special model set. Snow begins to fall, and the Plaids realize that their dream is coming true... they're going live for their own TV Holiday Special ("Finale, Part I: Merry Christmas / The Wassail Song," "Finale, Part II: Home for the Holidays," "Finale, Part III: Jingle Bells")!
The Plaids wish that they could stay but they have fulfilled their mission and must return to heaven. They say goodbye and perform one more number ("Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"). The lights fade as we see the Plaids' silhouettes fly across the moon.
Show History
Inspiration
Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings is a sequel to the original Forever Plaid. Plaid Tidings is a holiday version with modified story and songs.
Stuart Ross wrote Forever Plaid as an homage to the close-harmony "guy groups" of the 1950s, like The Four Aces and The Four Freshmen. Ross also included four-part arrangements of famous solo songs from the '50s, such as "Chain Gang," "Sixteen Tons" and an entire medley dedicated to songs by Perry Como. He got the idea to kill his characters from a cabaret in Rochester, and having the show running in repertory with Nunsense generated the plot point of the busload of Catholic girls as a cause of death. When the musical was in its initial stages, however, producers urged him not to make the Plaids dead, although Ross brought back the gimmick when the show moved to New York. Ross never intended for the show to be a nostalgic jukebox revue. Instead, he created the Plaids – a representation of the clean-cut mentality of the '50s – to show what would happen if people of that sensibility came into a modern-day world. He purposely fleshed out the four Plaids to give each character a personality and, ultimately, demonstrate to them what a wonderful life they had without stardom.
Productions
Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse on November 11, 2001.
Subsequent productions played to great success, including at the Neptune Theatre in Halifax, Nova Scotia (known for its productions of the original Forever Plaid), and the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. The 2010 San Diego cast featured Michael Winther, Leo Daignault, Jason Heil and David Brannen.
Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings has been produced regionally by a variety of theatres and is often done annually in the places where it has become an audience favorite, such as at the New Village Arts Theatre in Carlsbad, CA.
Cultural Influence
- Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings has become a recurring holiday favorite across the country, with many theatres doing the show annually.
- A cast recording called Holiday in Plaid was released in 2003. It featured Tony Award winner, Faith Prince. It was produced by Bill Meade, with musical direction by David Snyder and original vocal concept by James Raitt, cousin of Bonnie.
Trivia
- In addition to Plaid Tidings, the Forever Plaid franchise has another sequel, The Sound of Plaid: The New Glee Club Version of Forver Plaid. There was also a movie version of Forever Plaid that was released in 2009.
- In a program note written for the 2013 New Village Arts Theatre production, Forever Plaid creator, Stuart Ross, says that he resisted making a holiday sequel to Forever Plaid for quite some time, despite pressure to do so based on the original's popularity. However, because of 9/11, he finally gave in and wrote Plaid Tidings.
Critical Reaction
"When the shows [Forever Plaid and Plaid Tidings] are sincerely played, as Plaid Tidings is at [New Village Arts], they strike more chords than mere aural harmony can achieve."
– San Diego Downtown News
"As long as Forever Plaid are singing, it s first-rate holiday entertainment, particularly for those in the audience old enough to remember the 1950s."
– Stage Scene LA
"Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings arrives as an unexpectedly charming and inviting holiday tale."
– The Oakland Press, Detroit, MI
"But here's a show that you, the (mature) kids and Grandma will all enjoy, though probably in different ways, without needing to brush your teeth afterward. Never have dead men worn plaid more brilliantly."
– Pittsburgh Post-Gazette