These aren乌鸦传媒檛 the tea parties your grandmother holds.
When the Vancouver-based comedy duo James (Aaron Malkin) and Jamesy (Alastair Knowles) sit down for a quick spot of tea, hilarity ensues. James and Jamesy乌鸦传媒檚 O Christmas Tea is slated to rock the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre stage Dec. 1 and Kelowna乌鸦传媒檚 Mary Irwin Theatre Dec. 3-4.
Starting off when Jamesy invites the audience in for tea, only to discover he hasn乌鸦传媒檛 brewed enough, tragedy occurs when he asks Santa Claus for more of the English staple, and soon the world is flooded with tea.
乌鸦传媒淲here the heart is at Christmas, it乌鸦传媒檚 the idea that anything is possible,乌鸦传媒� Knowles said of the all-ages comedy show. 乌鸦传媒淲e wrote it for ourselves and it just happened to entertain others along the way. People have described it as walking out of a Monty Python film and into a Dr. Seuss book.乌鸦传媒�
As the world is quickly overrun with tea after a silly Christmas wish, James and Jamesy have no choice but to charge head first into the problem and find innovative and comedic ways to stay afloat.
With roots in physical theatre, dance and clowning-around, Malkin and Knowles joined forces to bring their brand of comedy to the stage.
乌鸦传媒淎aron and I started creating shows back in 2011 with these two British characters (James and Jamesy) where their adventures surround these tea parties,乌鸦传媒� Knowles said, noting that the show was born as a 10-minute skit. 乌鸦传媒淭he audience reception was off the hook. With that encouragement, we made our first full-length show and toured it in 2012.乌鸦传媒�
Their debut tour brought 2 for Tea 乌鸦传媒� an ordinary tea party that evolves into the extraordinary 乌鸦传媒� across Canada, garnering international recognition along the way. Now, five years later, the duo has sold more than 60,000 tickets and have performed more than 500 times across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, winning the 2016 Canadian Comedy Award for Best Live Ensemble, hitting the finals twice for the Just for Laughs Best Comedy Award, and racking up 20 Best of Fest awards along the way. James and Jamesy also teach classes in their Vancouver studio and host workshops internationally.
乌鸦传媒淎aron and I didn乌鸦传媒檛 plan on doing theatre professionally,乌鸦传媒� Knowles said.
But they love it.
乌鸦传媒淚 love the immediacy of the results. In theatre, you know if you乌鸦传媒檙e achieving your results as soon as you step on stage,乌鸦传媒� Knowles said. 乌鸦传媒淭he connection with the audience is a key style of our performance. With the audience reacting in real time, you乌鸦传媒檙e able to adjust the recipe on the fly.乌鸦传媒�
While the base of O Christmas Tea stays the same from performance to performance, Knowles said they are able to tweak parts of the recipe for certain audiences 乌鸦传媒� a process he is looking forward to crafting for Vernon audiences.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 always fun going to a new community and the turnout so far is great. It seems a lot of people are ready for a wintery good time,乌鸦传媒� Knowles said. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 fun for us. Every audience brings a different reaction.乌鸦传媒�
And for Knowles, that audience reaction is what keeps the wheels turning.
乌鸦传媒淚t doesn乌鸦传媒檛 matter what kind of day I乌鸦传媒檓 having. As soon as the show starts, that乌鸦传媒檚 where I am, fully,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淭here乌鸦传媒檚 a feeling that I was there for the magic of that night.乌鸦传媒�
James and Jamesy乌鸦传媒檚 O Christmas Tea takes the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre stage Friday, Dec. 1 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available for $34 adult, $30 senior/student ages 18-and-under and $19 for children ages 12-and-under from the Ticket Seller, 250-549-7469, . The show is also set for Dec. 3 and 4 at 7:30 p.m. at Kelowna乌鸦传媒檚 Mary Irwin Theatre, 250-717-5304, .
