Relaxed Performance – The Night Before Christmas

This relaxed performance of the show aims to support children, young people and adults with autism, communication difficulties, other learning disabilities and those with English as a second language.

We hope it will be helpful in accessing and enjoying our relaxed performance of The Night Before Christmas

What is The Night Before Christmas?

The Night Before Christmas is The Haymarket’s Christmas show for 2022.

The theatre company who are performing the show are called Big Wooden Horse and the man who runs it is called Adam. They have performed shows called Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and Aliens Love Underpants.

This time when the theatre company come to Halifax, they are performing a show called The Night Before Christmas.

How long will it last?

The show lasts about 50 minutes, so ten minutes less than an hour. There will be no actual break in the show, but the doors will be left open and you can go out of the auditorium if you wish.

Who will I see in the show?

In the show there are five characters. The characters are all played by actors, dressed in costume.

The first character you will meet is a little girl called Emily. Emily has brown hair, put up in two pigtails which are plaited and she has a fringe. Emily wears a nightie because the story is about the Night Before Christmas and Emily is just going to bed. Emily has a soft toy dog which is white with one brown ear, one brown patch over an eye and a brown nose called Rufus.

The other characters in the story are:

A mouse called Eddie. The mouse called Eddie is played by a female adult actor so he is quite big. He is a brown mouse with a long pale tale and big ears.

A robot called Dymotron – the robot is played by a male adult actor. He wears a white, blue and red costume, and a white helmet.

A fairy – the fairy is played by a female adult actor. She has blond hair in a long bob with a fringe. She wears a pale pink costume with ribbons and bows and she has pale pink wings and a crown on her head.

Emily’s dad – Emily’s dad is played by an adult male actor and he is wearing a Christmas jumper.

What is the stage?

The characters perform on the stage in front of the set. The set is what things are on stage to make the scene.

The set for this show change four times. The set is:

1. Outside the house
2. Inside Emily’s Bedroom
3. In the corridor of the house
4. In the toy cupboard
5. Under the Christmas Tree

What happens in the story?

In the story it is the night before Christmas day and Emily is very excited about Christmas coming. Emily is staring out of the window, holding her teddy.

At the same time a little mouse called Eddie wonders why only humans get presents but animals don’t. So he decides to set off to find Father Christmas to ask him why this is.

Whilst Eddie the mouse is on his journey he has lots of adventures. He has to make sure he is not eaten by the family’s cat. He meets a robot who gives him directions. And he meets the fairy who gives him some advice.

At the end of the show, Emily finds a red Christmas present stocking with a white fluffy top. She realises that in this stocking are presents for all the people in the audience.

So then Emily asks the audience – that’s you and everyone else watching it – to leave the auditorium with her and go back out into the space outside the auditorium and she gives out sweets to everyone in the audience.

Then the show is over and you can head into the atrium for a drink or snack from our cafe bar. Or you might want to go home with your friends.

We hope you enjoy the performance of The Night Before Christmas.