The way it’s performed, it’s more meaningful because of the humor and comedy in it, he said.
“I’m sure if you read the story of Jesus’ birth, there’s a lot of comical things about it in the Bible, and our creators of the show have brought those elements out.”
Playing Crosby in the show is of special significance to Brandt because his grandmother used to date Crosby, he said.
“I’ve always loved singing ‘White Christmas,’ and this was a wonderful opportunity that I get to sing it in the show,” he said.
“It’s fun because Bing Crosby’s version is by far the best. It makes it a small world.”
Brandt handles the role very well and looks somewhat like Crosby, Greg Baldwin said.
“Crosby is associated with Christmas, so it’s important to give the audience Bing,” he said.
“He’s the third-most-well-known personage associated with Christmas after Christ and Santa Claus.”
Other quirky additions this year are “Pirates of the Caribbean” character Capt. Jack Sparrow and Ulysses S. Grant, who will pal around with show veteran Abraham Lincoln, who appears in all of the church’s productions, Greg Baldwin said.
“It’s very strange because these are characters you wouldn’t associate with a Nativity pageant,” he said. “We add these strange characters because it makes us laugh and makes the audience laugh as well because it’s so unexpected.”
While it has some hilarious moments, audience members have told him it’s a wonderful and interesting telling of Jesus’ birth, he said.
“Not only is it moving as you would expect a Nativity pageant to be, but also very funny,” he said.
