Next to death and taxes, Chicagoans can count on their favorite theater companies doing holiday shows in the last few weeks of the year. For their part, Glenview’s Oil Lamp Theater presents Joe Landry’s radio play adaptation of It’s a Wonderful Life. With their charming downtown Glenview location, Oil Lamp’s production of It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play feels atmospheric, Glenview is a great stand-in for Bedford Falls.

It’s a Wonderful Life is typically devised as a “live radio play” – meaning, you the audience are watching a cast of actors, playing voice actors, putting on a fictional radio drama broadcast. Landry’s script has become one of the most produced holiday shows in the country, and it’s for good reason. His script stays faithful to the Frank Capra film but also allows theatre companies to add their own flavor to the plot.

Director Lauren Katz’ production injects a much-appreciated sense of humor. The radio players often merely serve as vessels for the characters of It’s a Wonderful Life, but here they’re given more dimension, and their individual talents are showcased in cute jingles and a stirring rendition of ‘Silent Night’ from Halli Morgan.

(L to R) Chase Wheaton-Werle, Carolyn Plurad, Nathaniel Thomas, Rami Halabi and Halli Morgan in IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE: A LIVE RADIO PLAY from Oil Lamp Theater.

A fun element of radio style plays is that actors perform multiple parts in rapid succession. Chase Wheaton-Werle switches between roles as seamlessly as a chameleon, while Nathaniel Thomas’ boyish earnestness makes him a perfectly sincere George Bailey. It’s also cool to see how old-time radio sounds were made, and Corey L Mills plays the “foley artist” with a great sense of comedic timing.

Landry’s script is malleable so that it always feels unique to the companies who have made this show their yearly tradition. Katz and cast bring a few new plot points that help thicken the story up. Though, It’s a Wonderful Life is a timeless classic film, it’s exciting to see what new directors bring to stage versions. There’s a quirky edge to Oil Lamp’s production that gives audiences a few surprises while staying true to the heart of this enduring classic. 

Recommended.

Through December 28 at Oil Lamp Theatre. 1723 Glenview Road. 847-834-0738