By BJ Austin, KERA News
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-811978.mp3
Dallas, TX – Christmas is past. The New Year is here. But for some, the holidays aren't over until the "Boar's Head and Yule Log Festival" in Fort Worth. It's a colorful pageant featuring a cast of more than 200. For 33 years, University Christian Church has presented "Boar's Head," believed to be the oldest continuing Festival of Christmas - first performed in 1340 in England. KERA's BJ Austin dropped in on a rehearsal for this "HOLIDAY TRADITION."
I'm Dr. Harry Parker, and I am chair of the Theatre Department at TCU. And I am currently one of several directors with the Festival. My primary responsibilities are to organize these rehearsals the week before the show and try to inspire those who are participating to understand what the Festival's about. It's an Epiphany Festival. It's one that's based on the arrival of the Magi. If you see the Festival, the first half of it is almost all secular: the processional of the Boar's Head, and the presentation of all the fancy food, the plum pudding and the mince pie. There's a grand celebration in costume and music. The second half of the Festival switches gears and becomes sacred. And so when we get to the very end of the Festival, all of the characters reappear and we see a live family re-enacting the Holy Family.
I am Bill Thompson and I am a Tall Lord. I am Annabelle Thompson and I am Cook's Help. This will be my first. This will be my fourth, I think. We've seen it for years. We've had her involved in it for years. And I had time to do it this year, so I volunteered.
My name is John Costas, and my wife and I are co-chairs of the Guild that basically oversees all the functions of the Boar's Head and Yule Log Festival. At UCC, we view this as our gift to the community every year. And it's presented four times a year on Epiphany weekend in January: two performances on Saturday, two performances on Sunday. And if you've ever seen it, you can't walk out of here without a smile on your face and a warm glow in your heart. We have about 100 background people and about 200 people who actually participate in the festival in costume. It's a full church effort. The biggest challenge is to make sure the costumes are all taken care of because the cost of replacing some of these costumes now would be astronomical. It's probably estimated that replacement costs for these costumes would be $100,00. And that's just material. That's not the labor of love that all of these people put into doing this for no compensation.
My name is Lelani Leyman and I was part of the initial team that put together the Boar's Head Festival to be presented a University Christian Church. And my role in this was to co-design the costumes and make decisions about the colors - the whole bit about the costumes. So, I've been with it a long time. I've seen every performance of this. I haven't missed any at all. And it's the same overwhelming each time I see it. It is overwhelming: and the message; and, watching the people in the audience, as they experience this.
I'm Carol Jane Lawrence. I have been involved with Boar's Head from the very beginning as Lelani has. I stay in the background. I'm one of what we call the marshals - one of the people who stand at a door to make sure the performers get in at the right time. We have people coming through many different doors and it's timed very, very carefully with the music and the pageantry. It's just a very awe inspiring and overwhelming. The comments we get from people every year include I can't believe that you've done this; and that it says what it says. And this makes Christmas for me, or makes Epiphany for me; and I need this to make it through the next year.