Tom Drummond just turned 45, and he’s pretty excited about his birthday present.
“I’m stoked about the Ninja blender I got,” said the bassist and co-founder of the alt-rock band Better Than Ezra. “I’m going to be whipping up some awesome smoothies for my kids.”
This from a guy who, for years, hosted epic Bloody Mary cocktail parties during Mardi Gras in his native Louisiana. “That wasn’t a very rock ’n’ roll thing to say,” Drummond said with a laugh during a recent phone conversation from his home in New Orleans.
Perhaps not, but it is a statement that many of the band’s longtime followers can relate to.
“Our fans have grown up with us,” Drummond said. “Some people are even starting to bring their kids to our shows.”
That makes sense, since Better Than Ezra came of age in the mid-’90s, an era that featured an alt-rock heyday when similar acts like Third Eye Blind, Everclear and the Goo Goo Dolls ruled the radio airwaves.
Ezra, which also includes lead vocalist and guitarist Kevin Griffin and drummer Michael Jerome, is about to debut its eighth studio release, “All Together Now,” and the record’s first single, “Crazy Lucky,” is enjoying a fair share of radio airplay.
“It’s a summertime song, for sure,” Drummond said. “Kevin was a little hesitant to release it because he thought it was a little too poppy, but I said, ‘Let’s do it,’ people like to sing along in their cars with the windows down.”
The trio is sure to perform its new hit when the band plays The NorVa on Saturday night, but Drummond knows the night’s biggest response will certainly come when Ezra launches into its best-known track, “Good.”
Nearly inescapable during the summer of 1995, “Good” was the first single from the band’s major-label debut, “Deluxe.” It reached No. 1 on the Billboard modern rock chart and helped push the album to platinum selling status.
“I asked Kevin the other day how many times he thought we’ve actually played that song. It has to be in the thousands, no question,” Drummond said. “Too bad we don’t get paid by the notes.”
He said the fans still light up when they hear the vintage tune, and he’s all for giving the people what they want. Especially fans in Hampton Roads.
“There was a time period in the late ’90s when Norfolk was probably our biggest market,” says Drummond. “They say Virginia is for lovers, and that certainly has been the case for Better Than Ezra. We always look forward to coming to Norfolk.”
At 22, Tyler Williams found himself in a rundown Seattle rehearsal space with a group of relative strangers.
Empty beer cans and cigarette butts littered the carpet and there were holes in the walls, but it wasn't the decor the musician found troubling from his vantage point behind a well-worn drum kit.
"When I first moved out there, it kind of felt like amateur hour," Williams, a native Virginian, said about the band he traveled cross-country to be a part of. "At first I thought maybe I had made a mistake. It took three or four months to really get to where it felt like maybe there was something there."
In spite of initial misgivings, Williams stuck with The Head and the Heart for two reasons. First, his good friend and former bandmate, Jonathan Russell, was one of its founders. Second, Williams stayed because he believed in the folk-pop act's future.
"The songs were just so good," he said. "There was always something there. We were just kind of like a diamond in the rough that needed polishing-up to be presentable."
It was a rough song that spurred the musician to leave Richmond in the first place. Williams had lived in the state capital for several years and played in the band Silent Film Star with Russell.
After three years with the group, Russell announced he was moving to Seattle. The guitarist and vocalist kept in touch with Williams and one day the drummer received a package in the mail containing the demo of a song Russell had written with The Head and the Heart's co-founder, vocalist and guitarist Josiah Johnson.
"The growth in his songwriting maturity was kind of astonishing," Williams said of his former bandmate. "When we were playing together the songs were no way near the caliber of what I heard on that demo."
Soon, the drummer moved west to join his old friend.
Tonight, they return to the commonwealth for a headlining gig at Harborfest, the annual free maritime festival in Norfolk's Town Point Park.
Just months after The Head and the Heart's initial, inauspicious gathering, the sextet saw a change in its trajectory. In 2009, the group self-released its debut album, which was sold at shows and in local music stores. The disc, packaged in homemade denim sleeves was a melange of harmony-driven roots music and Beatlesesque pop.
After selling more than 10,000 copies, The Head and the Heart had become the toast of Seattle's indie folk scene and was signed to the city's seminal Sub Pop record label, which remastered and re-released the disc in 2011 to critical acclaim.
The band's sophomore album, "Let's Be Still," followed last fall. The disc found The Head and the Heart introducing new elements into its sound, perhaps in an effort to distinguish itself from the rest of the folk rock revival pack that was buzzing around the musicsphere.
"We never really were that band," said Williams of being lumped together in the press with acts like The Lumineers and Mumford and Sons.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
"I love those bands," said Williams. "If our first album had a similar vibe, a lot of that was due to the ability that we had at that time and the constraints that we had on our recording budget. We're definitely trying to break out of that thing."
As evidence, Williams points to the track "Summertime," as an example of how the band has grown. "It's got a synth-y, danceable thing going on," he said. "I think that song takes us to a place that people maybe didn't expect."
But fans of the band needn't worry that The Head and the Heart are blowing up the playbook and veering away from what got it noticed in the first place. The group's storytelling and heartfelt lyrics remain at the core of the band's music.
"I think we keep getting better at crafting deeper songs," said Williams. "And I think we've gotten really good at imbuing our performances with so much passion and energy because we really believe in the songs. We honestly are in the moment every time we play them."
At one point during the recording sessions for the album "Love Lust Faith + Dreams," Shannon Leto, drummer for the alt-rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars pulled out an instrument from his childhood.
"When we were small, my brother and me used to mess around for hours on this electric music box," he said. "We actually used a lot of vintage instruments on this album. Jared even brought in this old synthesizer he's had since he was 13."
Music was a part of the Leto siblings' lives, long before Jared became an actor known for his movies like "Fight Club," "Requiem for a Dream" or his critically praised role as a transgender person afflicted with AIDS in the current film "Dallas Buyers Club."
"We always had instruments around the house when we were growing up," Shannon Leto, 43, said. "We love to express ourselves through music."
Four years ago, the creative process was not so pleasant.
During the recording of its third studio disc, "This Is War," the band was hit with a $30 million lawsuit by its label, Virgin Records, which claimed breach of contract when the trio attempted to sign with another label.
"Trying to create and express yourself with that gorilla on your back was really challenging," Leto said of the yearlong legal battle. "But I think if we didn't go through that experience we wouldn't have had that album, and we're really proud of it."
"This Is War" proved to be a breakout album for Thirty Seconds to Mars, which performs Thursday at The NorVa. (The show is sold out.) The disc earned numerous music awards, and its first two singles hit the No. 1 spot on Billboard's alternative music chart.
The lawsuit was eventually settled, and in September 2012, "Artifact," a documentary chronicling the legal dispute and the making of "This Is War," won the People's Choice Documentary Award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The environment in creating "Love Lust Faith + Dreams" was everything its predecessor was not.
"We didn't have anyone setting boundaries on us this time," Leto said. "The atmosphere was much lighter and more optimistic."
Anchored by arena-ready anthems, Thirty Seconds to Mars has fine-tuned its earnest, emotionally charged rock songs with a flourish of positivity.
Even the album's title is a nod to the band's growing holistic posture.
"When the name came up I remember thinking, yes, those are the words that describe the core of life and how we should experience it," Leto said. "You can't have one without the other if you want your life to be in balance. They are all integrated."
The Leto brothers, along with lead guitarist Tomo Milicevic, have clearly grown up since forming the band 15 years ago, but one constant remains, and that's the bond they've formed with their fan base, known as "the echelon."
"We have always said that this band is a shared experience," Leto said. "It's been that way ever since we played our first gig to maybe five or six people at this club called the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, Canada. I still remember talking to those people after the show, and there was this amazing feeling of camaraderie.
"We're not one of these bands that play music just for ourselves; we want to play for people, and when they respond, it's really hard to put into words, but there is a spiritual thing that is formed between us."
When The Little Theatre of Norfolk was casting "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)," director Nancy Bloom had to look beyond typical traits like individual talent, charisma or stage presence.
"The cornerstone of this particular show is the relationship the actors have with each other," she said. "The actors we chose just seemed to bring out the best in each other. I can't explain it in words other than you know it when you see it; sometimes people just click."
Improvisation plays a key role in this irreverent, fast-paced condensation of Shakespeare's complete oeuvre, so finding that unique combination of three actors in sync with each other was crucial.
"These actors have an obvious and unique chemistry between them, which, as a director, is something you constantly look for but don't always find. It was exciting to watch the three of them work together."
Of that trio, Jimmy Dragas is the lone Little Theatre of Norfolk alum. Actors Mike Dunavan and Connor Marr have appeared on many local stages but make their LTN debut with this show, which runs at the West Ghent playhouse through Jan. 26.
One of the longest-running plays in London's West End, this madcap send-up of Shakespeare features material from all of the Bard's 37 plays in just 97 minutes. The performance includes dozens of costume changes, several references to pop culture and a hefty dose of audience participation.
"There really is no fourth wall in this show," Bloom said. "The audience is part of the entire program, so it's a unique experience each time. We're doing 12 performances, and if you attend all 12, none of them will have been the same. There's always an element of surprise about what's going to happen next."
That foray into the unknown is one of the things that drew Bloom to the project. The Virginia Beach-based theater veteran is also an actor, last seen in LTN's production of "The Full Monty."
"I have acted in 'The Complete Works of William Shakespeare' twice, and it's one of my all-time favorites," she said. "For a performer, improv is so exciting, and this show is fast-paced, clever and really funny."
A mix of pratfalls, puns and parody, "Shakespeare (Abridged)" might make you wonder why anyone would endure the more than 4,000 lines of "Hamlet" when the famous storyline can be told by sock puppets in just 43 seconds.
And who wouldn't want to see "Othello" performed as a rap song or "Titus Andronicus" as a cooking show?
"This play is for people who may be intimidated by William Shakespeare," said Bloom, feigning gravitas in speaking the famous playwright's name.
But make no mistake. While the play interprets the Bard's body of work through a comedic lens, the impact of his handiwork remains in full effect.
"What 'The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)' really tries to do is initiate those who may not be as familiar with him into the wonderful work he composed," Bloom said. "Yes, it is silly, but it also superbly translates the beauty of Shakespeare's words."
Sally Struthers once got naked in front of Jack Nicholson.
It was for a sex scene in the 1970 film “Five Easy Pieces”; she still feels bad that her mom watched it.
Then there was the time when each of her fellow actors from the ’70s sitcom “All in the Family” won an Emmy award, but she did not.
Try going back to work the next day or week and not feeling a little strange about your absence of hardware.
If you think those were difficult career spells for the blond actress who’s gone from being a prime time TV star to being the spokeswoman for charitable organizations, Struthers has some news for you: Nothing, it seems, is quite as daunting as making your living on stage.
“Theater is not for sissies,” Struthers said by phone during a recent stop on the 50th anniversary tour of the classic American musical “Hello, Dolly!”
“I know a lot of actors who would never step a foot on the stage because it’s too hard. It’s really tough to learn an entire play, memorize all of the dialogue, all of songs and the blocking and choreography and then do it beginning to end without stopping. When you’re making a movie, you may only need to know two to five pages of dialogue a day. If you mess up, you can do retakes. With live theater, there is none of that; you are on your own. It’s exhilarating but it’s not for the faint of heart.”
Struthers should know.
Though she’s still best recognized for her role as Gloria Stivic, a liberal foil to her conservative pops Archie Bunker on “All in the Family,” Struthers has spent the better part of the past two decades on stage.
She’s done “Grease” and “Annie” on Broadway, played Mother Superior in a national tour of “Nunsense” and portrayed Mama Morton in a regional production of “Chicago.”
Her latest role comes as the lead in “Hello, Dolly!,” which will be performed tonight and Saturday at the Ferguson Center for the Arts in Newport News. It’s the first touring production of this iconic Broadway show in more than two decades, and it’s all because of the actress who’s still a little embarrassed about baring it all for Jack Nicholson.
“Hello, Dolly!” follows the exploits of Dolly Levi, a brassy turn-of-the-previous-century widowed matchmaker.
Despite several revivals on Broadway and countless regional productions, “Hello, Dolly!” has not been on a national tour since Carol Channing originated the lead role on Broadway nearly 50 years ago. That’s because Jerry Herman, the show’s lyricist and composer, didn’t think anyone other than Channing was up to the task of bringing Dolly back to a national audience.
Then he saw Struthers performing in a Los Angeles production of the musical “Mame.”
“He apparently liked my work, and we’ve since become good friends,” Struthers said. “‘Hello, Dolly!’ is classic American musical theater, and our producer, Dan Sher, felt a certain obligation to make this a really sterling production because of the 50th anniversary. You just can’t go out there with shoddy costumes and used sets. You build everything new and make it over-the-top so it’s extra delicious for the audience, and I think that’s what we’ve done.”
In recent years, Struthers has divided her frequent stage work with television roles, notably as Babette Dell, the raspy-voiced, cat-loving neighbor on “The Gilmore Girls.”
She’s also provided her distinct voice to animated shows like “American Dad.”
Even though she’s moved well past it, Struthers can’t shake the connection to that role as Archie Bunker’s little girl.
The actress may not have won that Emmy in the same year as her co-stars, but she did win two Emmy trophies for her portrayal of Gloria.
And while critics and historians laud the show for its groundbreaking depiction of racism, homosexuality and women’s rights, Struthers’ recollection of the show is more personal.
“It’s the laughter that has stuck with me more than anything else,” she said. “In rehearsal we would laugh as loud as the audience would later. The script girl actually had to time our laughter so the writers would know how much dialogue they had to cut when we taped the show. It was just constant laughter in my life for eight solid years. That’s my lasting impression of ‘All in the Family.’ ”
The live studio audience also proved to be an effective training ground for Struthers’ future theater work.
“I don’t know that there are too many shows that do that anymore, but ‘All in the Family’ was done in front of not one, but two live audiences a week,” Struthers said. “We would tape at 5:30 for one audience, break for dinner, and then tape in front of another audience at 8. Then the best moments were edited together. If you watch an episode of ‘All in the Family,’ you can tell it’s in front of a live audience, because you can see the actors hold for the laughter. When the laughter is piped in later, you can tell because the actors keep talking, there’s no natural pause.”
She has a hard time in scenarios without an audience, or one that has been instructed to exist in silence.
“I don’t know how someone like Jim Carrey can do it,” she said of the actor’s film work. “He has to work in a comedy vacuum. He could be hilarious and the crew isn’t allowed to make a noise, let alone laugh. That’s really hard. I can’t think of anything more uncomfortable. Live theater is a blessing for those of us that make our living being funny, because we get immediate reaction. That feels so good, like you’re floating about four inches above the stage floor.”
If that’s true, then Struthers must be levitating these days.
Since opening last month, “Hello, Dolly!” has earned rave reviews, and critics have been particularly effusive about her performance in the lead role.
“I am just delighted,” she said. “You know, Hollywood tells us females that at age 40 we ought to hang it up, so to be out here leading a company at 66 years old and getting these glowing reviews feels like I’ve died and gone to heaven.”
Growing up in Howard County, Caroline Bowman often fantasized about what it would be like to star in a Broadway musical.
On an October afternoon in Manhattan in 2011, she came one step closer to finding out.
“My cellphone rang and it was the casting director of “Wicked,” recalls the 2006 Glenelg High School graduate. “He said Caroline; I’d like to offer you your Broadway debut.”
To make the moment that much sweeter, Bowman’s mother was by was by her side when it happened.
“I had just moved to New York City three weeks before and my mom was visiting,” Bowman says.“She was standing right next to me when I got the news.I mean, how special is that? Nothing will ever top that.”
Perhaps not, but landing the starring role in the hit musical, “Evita,” probably ranks a close second.
On Sunday, Caroline Bowman will star as Eva Peron when the Tony Award nominated Best Revival of a Musical kicks off its national tour in Providence, RI. The Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice production had a successful revival on Broadway in 2012 and was nominated for three Tony awards.The bio-operetta chronicles the life of Argentina’s charismatic former First Lady and her rise from poverty to power.The show enjoys a spot in the pop culture lexicon thanks in part to its iconic number, “Don’t Cry for me Argentina.”
What teenage girl with musical theater aspirations hasn’t sung that song into a hairbrush in front of her bedroom mirror?
“I certainly did,” says Bowman with a laugh during a recent phone conversation from her home in New York City.“I just recently sang it in rehearsal for the first time from the balcony,” she says of the pivotal scene in “Evita” when Peron addresses an adoring crowd with a melody of regret and defiance.
“When I finished singing, I just started crying,” the actress admits. “It wasn’t until that moment that I fully realized the power of that song. I just felt it in my whole body. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”
Bowman’s Broadway career may have begun with a phone call but her knack for performing was apparently evident from a very young age.
“Even as a bald headed two-year - old Caroline had perfect pitch,” says Fullerton resident Connie Bowman of her daughter’s singing ability.“She had such bravado and would always end with a really big finish which was hilarious.”
Connie Bowman, an actor herself, was active in community theater when Caroline was growing up and it didn’t take long for her to follow in those footsteps. By the time she was 12, the performer landed her first lead role in a production of “The Secret Garden,” staged by The Heritage Players in Catonsville.
From then on, it was full steam ahead.
“I noticed her talent immediately,” says Susan Miller, Glenelg High School’s theater arts teacher for the past 15 years.Even more impressive, she notes, was Bowman’s work ethic.“Caroline was the student who had the leading roles and yet was also the last one in the dressing room helping me clean at the end of the night.”
“I was a total theater geek in high school,” Bowman acknowledges.
In her freshman year, the actress won ensemble roles in Glenelg’s Fall and Spring productions and by the following year, she was landing lead roles.
As a sophomore, she played Rizzo in “Grease” and in a unique casting decision; she also won the role of “Leading Player” in the musical “Pippin,” a character normally played by a man.
“It’s an emotional role and I thought Caroline could pull it off,” says Miller.
Evidently, she was right. That year, Bowman’s performance in “Pippin” won her the award for “Best Leading Actress in a Musical” at the Cappies, a program that honors the best in high School theater.She took home a golden trophy again the following year for her turn as Marian, in “The Music Man.” At Glenelg, the actress also starred in productions of “Fame” and “Once Upon a Mattress” and would occasionally cross paths in the hallways with her father Rob Bowman, the school’s wrestling coach.
“Both of my parents were always super supportive.”
That entailed toting their daughter to rehearsals for the Howard County Chorus and classes at the Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts founded by Toby Orenstein, co-owner and artistic director of Toby’s Dinner Theatre.
“I got my first professional acting job from Toby Orenstein,” says Bowman of performing at the venerable Columbia theatre.
By the time it came for Bowman to head off to college, it was clear she would pursue an acting career. In 2010, she graduated from Penn State with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Musical Theatre.During her senior year at the university, the actress traveled to China to perform the lead in “Fame,” and in Turkey she once again played Rizzo in “Grease.”With the ink barely dry on her diploma, she then landed the role of The Lady of the Lake in a national touring production of the musical, “Spamalot.” The part calls for a big-voiced belter and offered Bowman the chance to sing several show-stopping numbers.
When the 10-month long tour came to an end, Bowman returned to Howard County for a few regional acting gigs before following her dream to make it on Broadway.Her move to New York City two years ago was partially funded with money earned in 2007 as the second place winner of the Rising Star Award at the Howard County Arts Council’s annual Celebration of the Arts.
Within just a few weeks of moving to the Big Apple, Bowman got that phone call to join the Tony Award winning musical, “Wicked.”She was cast in the ensemble and as the understudy for the lead role of the green-skinned witch, “Elphaba.”
“Being an understudy is very challenging,” says Bowman.“After each performance, I would go home and practice Elphaba’s lines just in case I got the call that I needed to go on.I wanted the lines to be the last thing on my mind so I wouldn’t panic if I had to step in.”
As it turned out, Bowman got to perform the lead role on three separate occasions and friends and family were there to see it happen.
“Watching Caroline on Broadway for the first time was the most exciting night of my professional career,” says her former drama teacher Susan Miller. “I was holding her Grandma’s hand when she walked on stage. It was truly a magical moment.”
Bowman was still part of the “Wicked” troupe when she auditioned for a new musical based on a 2005 film about a struggling shoe maker and his drag queen business partner.The show eventually got the green light and Bowman was part of the original cast when it opened in Chicago in October of 2012. Six months later “Kinky Boots,” with music by pop star Cyndi Lauper, debuted on Broadway.In June, the show won six Tony Awards including “Best Musical.”
During the award ceremony, Bowman made her national television debut when the cast of “Kinky Boots” performed live near the end of the program.
“That whole day I felt like I was having an out of body experience,” the actress recalls.“We had to wake up really early for a dress rehearsal at Radio City Music Hall and then we got get bussed back across town to our own theater to do a matinee show.”
After taking their final bow at the end of that afternoon performance, the “Kinky Boots” cast got back on the bus to close out the Tony Awards show.It was a long day, so what happened next isn’t all that surprising.
“After we came off the stage, I literally passed out,” Bowman reveals with a laugh. “I don’t know what happened but I fell to the ground. It was crazy how excited I was. I probably just freaked out. It was actually kind of hilarious, I was fine right after.”
Given what was happening in Bowman’s life at the time, it’s understandable how she may have felt a bit overwhelmed.Just a month before her TV debut, the actress learned she had won the leading role in the national tour of “Evita.”
“I found out on I got the part on May 7th which is Eva Peron’s birthday,” says Bowman.
The ironically good news came after a long and strenuous tryout process.
“My first audition was in February of this year and then I went through eight or nine callbacks,” she says.
It can’t be easy to navigate the ups and downs inherent with Bowman’s profession but the actress says her training makes steadying her emotions a lot easier.
“Yes, I use all I’ve learned when I’m creating a role or performing, but I was also taught that it’s a skill to audition,” she notes.“Sometimes you only have three or four minutes in a room with somebody to convince them that you’re the right person for the part. Auditioning is my job. Getting to perform in a show is the prize.”
Even so, it’s a reward that requires a lot of work.
“I’ve done as much research as I can about Eva Peron,” says Bowman. “I’m trying to learn as much as I can about her and use what I know about her life to help me develop my character.”
On top of that, for the weeks leading up to the tour’s opening weekend, Bowman has been rehearsing eight hours a day, six days a week.
“There is a lot of singing and dancing in “Evita,” she says.“It’s very physically demanding but I love every minute of it.”
Playing an iconic role in a hit musical is no small task, but it’s one that Bowman embraces.
“I feel like every part of my journey to this point has prepared me for the next job,” she offers. “With “Kinky Boots” I got to open a show on Broadway and feel what it’s like to be part of a company which is completely different than being a replacement which I was in “Wicked.” Every single job I’ve had has added a new skill.I can’t wait to go on the road with this show. I’m totally up for the challenge.”
Several years ago Jack Jennings and his young granddaughter were driving in Virginia Beach's Little Neck neighborhood, taking a peek at holiday decorations.
Many of the homes were glowing with colorful lights, and a few of the yards were even plots for kitschy inflatable Santas.
But as they drove, Jennings couldn't help but wonder why there weren't any manger scenes of the Nativity, like when he was a boy.
He shared the comment with his granddaughter, who asked what a manger was.
The reply surprised Jennings and friend
Dan Duquette, a fellow congregant at King's Grant Presbyterian Church in Virginia Beach.
"It struck him that there was a big generational gap of experience about the meaning of Christmas," Jennings said.
Their chat on the steps of the church was the inspiration behind the church's annual Bethlehem Walk, which takes place tonight through Sunday.
"We convert our church building into the 2,000-year-old town of Bethlehem," said Duquette, the event's coordinator. "It takes a construction crew about four hours to erect the walls and another three days to decorate."
The holiday event, now in its eighth year, is sponsored by King's Grant Presbyterian Church along with nearby St. Nicholas Catholic Church. It's not a show or a play, but rather an interactive experience that attempts to "transport" visitors back to Bethlehem to witness the birth of Jesus.
Upon arrival, guests walk through the Bethlehem set-up, encountering costumed actors playing shopkeepers, tax collectors, Roman guards and, most notably, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. Along the way, they can sample fresh bread from the baker, sniff aromatic cedar wafting from the carpentry shop and pet small animals assembled near the manger.
"There's a lot to see, smell and taste," Duquette said. "We try to engage all the senses to bring the story more to life."
Before entering the gates of Bethlehem, visitors are given a card with information about their first-century "family," which allows them to interact with the characters they encounter.
"Many of our volunteers have grown up playing parts in Bethlehem," said Duquette. "Young boys who play shepherds when they're in middle school graduate to playing Roman guards when they become teenagers, and girls who work in the shops get to be angels when they get older."
But, of course, the starring role always goes to a newcomer.
"We are always on the lookout for young moms, so we can have a real live baby Jesus," Duquette said.
Or, several baby Jesuses.
This year's Bethlehem Walk will feature seven babies taking turns being swaddled in the manger.
Since its inception in 2006, the Bethlehem Walk has grown from hosting 600 visitors to more than 2,000.
For Duquette, the event's popularity is evidence of a growing frustration with the commercialization of Christmas.
"We are getting further and further away from its true meaning," Duquette said. "There are billions of dollars spent on marketing, and it's a challenge for parents to talk to their kids about why we celebrate Christmas, apart from all the talk of toys and Santa."
He said the message is getting through to the walk's participants.
"After the walk we have refreshments in our Fellowship Hall," Duquette said. "I've talked to dozens of kids over the years about what they thought happened during the walk, and almost every single time they say, 'The savior was born.'
