[file photo by me]

From gin & tonicah Hanukkah fetes, to ugly sweater parties, to awkward office eggnog-a-thons, your calendar may already be booked through 2015. But for those of you who are looking for a theater fix, or to find a family friendly outing while people are in town, we didn’t want to leave you hanging. Although we normally don’t recommend shows without prior viewing, with holiday parties and cold and flu season upon us, we just didn’t have time to see everything. But that’s no reason for you to miss out. So without further ado, here’s our round-up of what caught our eye this holiday season that we didn’t get to see.

Looking for laughs?

A Merry Forking Christmas
PianoFight’s brand-spanking-new-Kickstarter-funded venue is opening this week! The first show to pop the champagne on its main stage is A Merry Forking Christmas, their reliably funny choose-your-own-adventure holiday sketch show. Go check out PianoFight’s new digs, try their new bar, and forget about your holiday stress. From the mouths of marketers:

The Holidays are the most magical time of the year, unless you’re stuck in the mall on Christmas Eve. PianoFight’s A Merry FORKING! Christmas chronicles the final hours of the Christmas shopping frenzy through the eyes of a pot-dealing Santa and his cookie-stand partner in crime, a mall security guard on his last legs, a bride-to-be deserted by her would-be fiancé, and a bored mortician who’s got nothing to do until people get back to the business of dying once the holidays have ended. The fates of these five characters and whether Christmas can be saved for each is left up to the audience who will vote at crucial forks in the plot to determine the final outcome. This December, with 362,880 possible paths through the show, saving Christmas is up to you. Get your tickets here.

Looking for a FABULOUS spin on holiday classics?

Golden Girls Live: The Christmas Episodes
We went to Golden Girls last year, and it was one of our favorite Drama Talk & Drink reviews to date. The show returns to the Victoria Theater again this year with new episodes, but the same sass. Although many of the shows are already sold-out, you should try and snag tickets to this show if you can. From the mouths of marketers:

Dorothy, Sophia, Blanche and Rose return to the stage to spread a little holiday cheer, as only the Golden Girls can, with new sets and episodes for 2014. Full of heart and sass, four of San Francisco’s top drag performers bring the ladies of NBC’s The Golden Girls to uproarious life, recreating holiday episodes from the show’s run on television. Prepare yourself for Blanche’s sexy antics, Sophia’s cutting wit, Dorothy’s consternation, Rose’s endearing stupidity and lots of beefy shoulder pads. No matter the season, nothing warms your heart — or keeps you laughing — like the Golden Girls. Get your tickets here.

Looking for a family tradition?

A Christmas Carol or Nutcracker
In many families theater going comes but once a year, and often it’s to see one of these classic holiday shows. ACT’s A Christmas Carol is here for all your ghostly Christmas needs, and the San Francisco Ballet’s Nutcracker promises anthropomorphized dancing rats and sugar plums. What more could you need to make your holidays complete? Both shows run through the end of December, but because they’re a holiday-must for many, these shows tend to sell out quickly. Get your tickets fast. From the mouths of marketers:

A Christmas Carol: Featuring a lively cast of dozens, gorgeous costumes, and those deliciously spooky ghosts, the Bay Area’s favorite holiday tradition returns with a sparkling, music-infused production of A Christmas Carol. Bring your family, bring your friends, and check your “humbugs” at the door! Get your tickets here.

Nutcracker: San Francisco Ballet’s sparkling production of Nutcracker, set here in our own “City by the Bay,” has introduced audiences of all ages to the magnificent world of ballet. This holiday season, experience the beauty and athleticism of SF Ballet’s international cast of world-class dancers in Nutcracker, a San Francisco tradition since 1944. Get your tickets here.

Looking to reflect on the year?

Our Town
If you haven’t seen a show by Shotgun Players out at the Ashby Stage in Berkeley you need to. They’re a fearless company, doing some great work “determined to create bold, relevant, affordable theatre…” If you’ve never seen Thorton WIlder’s classic play Our Town you need to, because everyone needs to reflect on the transience of human life, especially around the New Year. From the mouths of marketers:

Wilder graduated from Berkeley High in 1915, and Shotgun is proud to bring this classic to The Ashby Stage. Even if you think you know Our Town, we guarantee that you’ll experience something new – after all, no one breaks down the classics like we do. With live music throughout, we will find the heartbeat of every line, every word. “That’s what it was to be alive…To be always at the mercy of one self-centered passion, or another.” Get your tickets here.

Looking for a gift?

SF Sketchfest Tickets!
If you’re stumped on what to get the person who has everything, consider giving the gift of live theater this year. There’s lots of great theater on the horizon for 2015, but one easy bet for fun is the 14th Annual SF Sketchfest: The San Francisco Comedy Festival (January 22- February 8). Tickets just went on sale this week, and popular shows are already filling up. With big names like John Hodgeman, Kristen Schaal, Maya Rudolph and even Bill Nye the Science Guy, you’re bound to find something hilarious. From the mouths of marketers:

Audiences have overwhelmingly responded to SF Sketchfest’s diverse programming which has featured performers from every major North American television comedy smash of the last 25 years including Saturday Night Live, The Kids in the Hall, Mr. Show, Arrested Development, The Upright Citizens Brigade, The State, Mystery Science Theatre 3000, Strangers With Candy, The Simpsons, The Daily Show and more. SF Sketchfest offers its audiences the rare opportunity to see their favorite performers in intimate live performances and discussions. Get your tickets here.

We can’t review all these shows, but that doesn’t mean you can’t. Let us know in the comments if you see any of these shows and liked them! Stay tuned for one final Drama Talk & Drinks before we call it quits for 2014.

When Brittany and I saw the announcement for PianoFight’s production of Roughin’ It III: Theater. On. The. Rocks that is being performed in a “forest setting where audiences, who are encouraged to pack a picnic and BYO-Libations, will enjoy fresh BBQ, cold beer and award-winning theater, comedy, music and dance while being taken on a journey into the woods and beyond” we were more than intrigued. Since it’s one night only we wanted to get the DL from the show’s producer Emma Rose Shelton before we attended to get a feel for what we are getting ourselves into.

Katie: So this show is made up of many pieces, how was that process?

Emma: We reached out beyond the San Francisco community and got a ton of submissions, close to 100 submissions from all over the US. It was crazy. Way more than we had anticipated. We read a bunch of scripts. We gave everyone specifications of what the property had – there’s a well, a swimming pool, and a chicken coop – these are things you can use to your advantage and please do. And so writers were able to tailor pieces to that.

K: Can you sum up the experience for us?

E: This year we have 8 pieces in the show. We take you around the property where we have all these short plays in site specific locations. Its a really, really good time and a very different experience than being in a black box in San Francisco. It has had its challenges and its benefits but its one of the most rewarding experiences that I have had at this theatre company thus far. One of my favorites.

Brittany: Are most of the plays comedies or is it a mixed bag?

E: Definitely a mixed bag. This year happens to have 3 movement based pieces and some dance which we’ve had a little bit in years past but not as much as this year. In general PianoFight is known for our sketch comedy since we have the two groups Mission Control and Chardonnay that produce shows on a regular basis. We have a piece in the show by Chardonnay, so there are some strong comedic pieces but definitely a mixed bag.

K: How long is the show?

E: It will be about 2 hours and sometimes it runs a bit over. Each piece ranges from 3-15 minutes, there’s a pretty wide range.

B: Anything special people need to know?

E: Definitely wear layers and shoes you can walk in. And be prepared to move around a little bit more than years past, but other than that we aren’t asking people to take a serious hike into the wilderness but we will have people walk around the property a little bit and up a little hill, experiencing different terrains.

K: How many people will you be expecting?

E: 200 people is our cap, any more than that and it’s challenging to hear [the actors], but when you are outdoors it really doesn’t feel like that many people. It’s an adventure. The shuttle to the venue is also part of the adventure. We can fit 49 and it gives people a time to connect and bond and have a whole added experience.

B: Do the pieces kind of lead into each other, or is it more like a piece ends and we move on to another?

E: There will be guides this year and there may be some transitions that lead into each other but it mostly it will be that a piece will end and a guide will show you to the next piece. There isn’t a storyline for the whole show, each piece is different.

B: When should people arrive?

E: We encourage everyone to come early and picnic. The doors open at 5pm. We will have a solid BBQ option so if you wanted to eat a full dinner you will be able to.

B: Why should people go? What makes this unique?

E: I think PianoFight in general tends not to attract your typical theater going audience and this show is very much an extension of that. It takes you out of San Francisco and into an environment that is completely different from what you are used to and you can still see work that is timely and relevant. The majority of the pieces were written by people under 30 about current, relatable topics.

K: Why only one night?

E: It makes it that much more more special.

Interested? You can check out Roughin’ It III: Theater. On. The. Rocks. Saturday, September 6th, 2014 at the Paradise Healing Center, located at 9 Alamo Way, Lagunitas, CA 94938.

Shuttles for PianoFight’s Roughin’ It III depart 4pm at 54 Mint Plaza in downtown San Francisco for the 6:00pm show time. There are half price tickets available on Goldstar which will surely go quickly. Once they do, you can purchase tickets at pianofight.com that start at $50 GA and $70 GA w/ Shuttle Ride. (NOTE: Shuttle Rides are 21-and-over with valid ID).