Santasia – A Holiday Comedy is back at Sherman Oaks’ Whitefire Theatre for its 25th annual mash-up of  madcap SNL-style skits, clever Claymation videos, hilarious Broadway musical parodies, nostalgic Christmases memories, and Brandon Loeser in drag, the best possible news for audiences seeking holiday comedy rated R-for-language and H-for-heart.

Sibling co-writers Brandon and Shaun Loeser are joined this year by the equally talented Omar Heyward, Chey Kennedy, Rusty Locke, and Tara Jean O’Brien (yes, they’ve added a distaff member to their cast list!) to celebrate the holidays with fans so fervent and legion, just about everyone in the audience will likely be seeing Santasia for the umpteenth time and re-relishing skits in which a) a very pregnant Virgin Mary reveals her child’s divine parentage to an unsuspecting Joseph on The Jerry Springer Show, b) a family is torn asunder when Daddy inadvertently guesses what’s inside his Christmas gift box, and c) Santa’s elves protest the diversity-promoting arrival of an ogre in their toy-making midst, to name just three.

Sprinkled into the comedy mix are musical spoofs of such Broadway hits as Chicago, its “Cell Block Tango” rewritten as “Snowbock Tango,” and A Chorus Line, whose iconic “God I Hope I Get It” now has tiny tots revealing the presents they’d like Santa to leave under their Christmas trees.

Audience members in search of near-naked male flesh (albeit not exactly the ripped bods you’ll see on the cover of Men’s Fitness) will get it when the Santasia men dance Full Monty-style to Tom Jones’s “You Can Leave Your Hat On” and when the cast’s male members don Christmassy bikinis to undulate (semi-)gracefully to the oh-so-chic sounds of Dimitri From Paris’s “Stylish Girl.”

 Brandon Loeser once again earns Best In Drag as both an adorable pigtailed tot with only one wish for Christmas (an Easy-Bake Oven) and a sultry nightclub chanteuse with a thing for Frosty The Snowman.

Animated Claymation segments once again include “Penguins Don’t Fly,” whose South Pole hero tries out assorted ways to prove that he too can take to the skies; “Pulp Christmas,” a foul-mouthed holiday take on the Tarantino classic, “Some Assembly Required,” which has a steadily more inebriated Dad attempting to put together a bicycle before Christmas morn; and “San Andreas Snowman,” whose Frosty-building tots find themselves at odds with the titular fault line.

The Loeser brothers recreate a family holiday tradition in the naughtily named “F!@#$ing Lights” and a certain Oscar winner named Christopher makes a guest appearance in “Walken In A Winter Wonderland.”

On a more personal note, each Santasian waxes nostalgic about a childhood Christmas memory guaranteed to evoke both chuckles and tears.

Last but not least, the evening’s grand finale has the entire cast going “Sledding” in the most inventively wild-and-crazy ride down the hill ever taken by man or sled.

Santasia 25.0 is once again a Loeser family affair, with Shaun returning to direct with holiday pizzazz (his co-directors are Tania Pearson-Loeser and brother Brandon) in addition to designing the show’s Christmas-trees-and-lights-filled set, and choreographer Pearson-Loeser brings out the best from her six not-ready-for-Broadway “dancers.”

Musical director/composer Stacey Quinealty has whipped the cast into vocal shape, costume designer Pearson-Loeser has confectioned a whole bunch of imaginative Christmas gems (with Rose Limon providing additional costumes), and Shaun and Tania provide a multitude of holiday props.

Lighting designer Wynn Zucchero has made all of the above look even spiffier, while animator Michael Granberry merits cheers for his equal parts nostalgic/hilarious animated claymation shorts.

Santasia – A Holiday Comedy is produced by Shaun and Brandon Loeser. Zucchero and Andrew Palmer are assistant producers. Mitch Rossander is stage manager. Nora Feldman is publicist.

Few holiday extravaganzas can boast twenty-five Decembers and counting. Indeed, not even a global pandemic could stop Santasia from returning for its 21st birthday in 2020, albeit virtually.

Fast forward to 2024 and there’s still no stopping Santasia from delivering the holiday entertainment goods as only it can. Whether you’re a devoted fan or a Santasia virgin, there’s truly nothing else like it in town!

Whitefire Theatre, 13500 Ventura Blvd., Sherm an Oaks. Through December 22. See website for detailed performance schedule.
www.santasia.com

Note: Photos: Michael Duisenberg, Kenny Johnston

Tags: Brandon Loeser, Los Angeles Theater Review, Shaun Loeser, Whitefire Theater