All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 returns to Pantages Theatre
May 24, 2012

All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914, the poignant production that has become a Twin Cities' holiday classic and an annual theatre-going tradition, will return for six performances only Wednesday through Saturday, December 19-22, 2012 at the historic Pantages Theatre, 710 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis. With words and songs drawn from the era, All Is Calm recalls the remarkable and spontaneous World War I truce between Allied and German forces in No Man's Land over Christmas 1914. This compelling ode to peace was created by Theater Latte Da's acclaimed artistic director Peter Rothstein and features Cantus, one of America's finest vocal ensembles, with musical arrangements by Erick Lichte and Timothy C. Takach. All Is Calm is a collaboration among Cantus, Theater Latte Da and Hennepin Theatre Trust. Tickets go on sale at 11 a.m., Friday, June 1. To purchase and for more information visit HennepinTheatreTrust.org.

All Is Calm relives the story of an astounding moment in history when Allied and German soldiers laid down their arms to celebrate the holiday together by trading carols, sharing food and drink, playing soccer and burying the dead. In some places the truce lasted only a night, in others until New Year's Day. This dramatic re-telling contains actual quotes and letters from thirty World War I figures brought to life by actors Matt Rein, David Roberts and Alan Sorenson.

Cantus beautifully weaves a tapestry of sound, drawing from patriotic tunes, trench songs, medieval Scottish ballads and holiday carols from England, Wales, France and Germany which take on new depths when set in the context of trench warfare. Music, an important part of life in the trenches, helped create a context that inspired the truce. All Is Calm opens with a set of carols arranged by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams for his own battalion.

Rothstein, hailed as one of the Twin Cities' premiere directors, worked five years to develop All Is Calm. He remembers, "I wanted to tell the story in their words, so I created the drama primarily through found text including letters, official war documents, autobiographies, World War I poetry, grave stone inscriptions and even an old radio broadcast. I was able to spend time along the Western Front and conduct extensive research in Brussels, Ieper, Paris and London. It was incredibly powerful to stand on the very spot where this extraordinary happening took place. For decades, the Christmas truce was considered a romantic fable, however there is no doubt thousands of courageous men took part."

The world premiere of All Is Calm was broadcast live on Classical Minnesota Public Radio and has since been heard around the globe through American Public Media and the European Broadcast Union. The program won the Gold World Medal at the 2010 New York Festivals and the 2010 Gabriel Award, which honors works of excellence in broadcasting that serve audiences through the positive, creative treatment of concerns to humankind. The original All Is Calm cast recording from this highly acclaimed collaboration between Cantus and Theater Latte Da is available for purchase on CD and as a download at cantussings.org.

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