By Charly Shelton,

with poetry from Dr. Seuss

All the Whos down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot.

But the Grinch who lived just north of Whoville did not.

The classic tale of a Grinch most unpleasant

Has now become a musical holiday present.

Starring John Larroquette as “Old Max” the dog,

The story begins as we break through the fog.

On the outskirts of Whoville, the town of the Whos,

And we hear them singing the good Christmas news.

Now John Larroquette is re-telling this tale.

Max is now old, there’s less wag in his tale.

But Max explains whathappened that year

When Christmas was stolen by one all Whos fear.

The Grinch hated Christmas, the whole Christmas season.

Please don’t ask why, no one quite knows the reason.

But whatever the reason for his Yuletide dismay,

He decided to stop Christmas from coming his way.

He loaded some bags and some old empty sacks

On his ramshackle sleigh, and whistled for Max.

He went down to Whoville and took every wreath,

He took every present, he took the Roast Beast!

On the walls he left nothingbut hooks and some wire,

A

nd the last thing he took was the log for their fire.

And at the end of the night, when he was going to dump it,

He heard sounds of joy echo up to Mount Crumpit.

And the Grinch figured out it’s all about love;

Christmas had come as he watched from above.

Without presents, feasts, candy canes or

Anything but family- they needed no more.

S

o the Grinch’s small heart grew three sizes that day,

And the story lives on so that we may

Hear what he heard and take into our hearts

The whole meaning of Christmas, not only the present parts.

Now the show was great fun, the actors superb;

And all should go see it – come from cities and ‘burbs.

To see Stefan Karl of “LazyTown” fame,

A

s he plays the Grinch and takes his aim.

At a character made by a man who’s well off

To being a legend – Mr. Boris Karloff.

But Karl has chosen to play this character

In a way more familiar, from a different actor.

Karl seems to have taken some cues for this hairy

Old Grinch from the actor who played him – Jim Carrey.

The Grinch was a stitch, he was really quite fun.

To be honest though, this character is overdone.

Karl was great, but trying to play

The Carrey rendition was sad I must say.

He was still very good, and his voice was just top.

Don’t let this one drawback make you stop

From going to see it it is worth the price;

For adults and for children it sure is real nice.

The ticket costs range from $25 to $100;

So come and enjoy some songs that will get rid

Of those Christmas time blues, from the shopping and bills;

And the turkey to come, ‘cause we all know now it just makes us ill.

And remember one thing – the thing that gave me

The happiest moment from the book, play, and movie.

“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store;

Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

Tickets available from TicketMaster or the box office or online at BroadwayLA.org.

Igive this show 4.5 out of 5 and I hope when

You see it, it gives you a good vibe.

It’s good for all ages, both the young and the old,

So remember this as the weather gets cold.

And Christmastime comes to bring you good cheer

That you’ll hold in your hearts for every year.

From all of us to all of you, Happy Holidays we wish

And may the spirit of the season bring you just this.