Orlando Fringe 2024 review: 'Becoming Santa'

As a Jew with a vast collection of Hanukkah socks, I have no personal frame of reference for the elaborate gift-giving rituals that many families create around Christmas. Nor did I ever experience first-hand the devastating discovery of Santa Claus’s nonexistence, which often signals the end of innocence. However, I still laughed hard at Becoming Santa , writer/director Mary Boatman’s charming collection of comedic sketches depicting how a diverse range of different families struggle (with limited success) to preserve the holiday magic for their precocious progeny.

Bradley (Carlos Filomeno) forms the backbone of the loosely linked vignettes as a shopping mall elf who has lost the holiday spirit. His interactions with his method actor co-worker, Mary (Anna LeFlore), recall a G-rated version of David Sedaris’ Santaland Diaries . Other memorable characters include Jen (Amie McGaha), a suspicious 11-year-old who conducts a sting operation on her gift-giving neighbors, and Evan Leigh Rumler as a kid who understands Black Santa in terms of the Marvel multiverse. Of course, Saint Nick himself makes an eleventh-hour appearance; I for one wouldn’t dare tug on towering Grail Schroeder’s white whiskers to see if they’re as authentic as they seem.

With a surprisingly substantial suburban living room set (complete with working fireplace) and consistently sharp sitcom timing, this is among the Fringe’s most polished original comedies. Ultimately, its message is less about kids growing up than about adults mourning their own childhoods. The squishy climax involving a foster child finding his forever home is a bit too Hallmark Channel for my taste, but I’ll forgive this festive chestnut because ... hey, it’s Christmas!

Orlando Fringe Festival: Tickets and times for "Becoming Santa"
[location-1] [event-1]