Theatre of Dare Bringing ‘Wonderful Life’ To Kill Devil Hills

Posted By Matt Artz on November 9, 2015

Theatre of Dare is coming home for the holidays.

The organization, currently celebrating its 25th season of community theatre on the Outer Banks, will perform It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play at the Comfort Inn in Kill Devil Hills on December 12 and 13.

The show takes the Frank Capra film classic and transports it to a 1940s radio studio, with a handful of actors playing all the beloved characters from the movie.

“Theatre of Dare began on the beach, and we thought the 25th Anniversary Season would be a good occasion to come back,” said TOD President Don Bridge. “This particular production is a heartwarming version of a holiday favorite and adapts well to a non-theater setting, so it seemed like the perfect show to reintroduce ourselves to our roots.”

TOD’s very first production was Neil Simon’s California Suite, performed at the Port O’ Call restaurant in Kill Devil Hills in March of 1992. In the years that followed, Theatre of Dare used several venues as its home, including Kitty Hawk Elementary School, the Baum Senior Center, the Wanchese Community Building, and the now-defunct Outer Banks Jubilee.

Eventually, TOD found the stage at Manteo Middle School (now College of the Albemarle’s Dare Campus) to its liking, and has been performing there ever since.

“But we’ve always prided ourselves on being an organization that represented all of Dare County,” says Bridge. “We feel that doing this production on the beach side is a great opportunity to spread the theatrical love around.”

The script for It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play was adapted from the movie by playwright Joe Landry, who brings George Bailey and all the residents of fictional Bedford Falls to life in a live broadcast during the golden age of radio. Just as in the movie, Bailey has fallen on hard times and contemplates ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve until a gentle angel named Clarence intervenes.

“It’s the perfect holiday tale of love, family, and redemption,” said TOD Board Member Jessica Sands. “We think it will be something people of all ages will enjoy.”

So could this one-time performance on the beach side of things turn into something more regular for Theatre of Dare? “We’ll have to see,” says Bridge. “If it does as well as we hope it does, we would love to make this into an Outer Banks holiday tradition!”

It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play takes the stage December 12 at 7:30 p.m. and December 13 at 2 p.m. at the Comfort Inn on the Ocean, 1601 S. Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills. Included in the $15 ticket price ($10 for kids and season ticket holders) will be a reception celebrating the 25th Season, light hors d’oeuvres, and a cash bar. Seating is limited, so advanced ticket purchase is strongly encouraged. For tickets and more information, go to www.theatreofdareobx.com.