The perfect way to get into the spirit of Christmas, according to Danielle Yilmaz, will be by attending “Sophia’s Christmas Miracle.”
Yilmaz, who owns Musicology music studio in Indian Head Park, has written the story for the musical revue, which she also directs. The show will be performed by 32 area youth Sunday, Dec. 7, at Ashton Place, 341 75th St., Willowbrook.
“It’ll appeal to anyone … there’s a lot of singing and it’s really a beautiful and heartwarming story,” Yilmaz said.
Yilmaz has been teaching voice and piano in the western suburbs for about four years and opened her studio about 18 months ago. In addition to piano and voice, lessons in drum, guitar, sax and clarinet are also offered.
The concept of the musical revue allows all of the performers, rather than just one or two key stars, to shine. Yilmaz said that most of the kids in the show are students of Musicology and are between the ages of 6 and 17.
“There’s a lot of upfront singing for kids who might not otherwise get a chance to be a leading role. Every person, no matter their ability, really gets their own moment to shine, and they’re really excited about it. A lot of these kids haven’t been up front before,” she said.
She said that the show uses selected songs from favorite musicals including “Mary Poppins,” “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” and “Little Women.”
Yilmaz wrote the story, which in a way reflects her own experience. Sophia is a World War I-era young married woman, pregnant with her first child while her husband is off fighting the war. His return in time for the birth is uncertain. The closing of the story takes place around Christmas time.
Yilmaz said that when she was pregnant with her first child, her husband was stuck in Turkey because of delays in processing his visa.
“In the story, Sophia didn’t know what was going on with her husband. I didn’t know either in my case. I tweaked that a little (for the show),” Yilmaz said.
Tickets are $10 per person, with children ages four and younger free. For further information or to reserve tickets, call Musicology at (708) 784-1904.
Please send Western Springs/ Indian Head Park story ideas to wendymfoster@comcast.net
