(upbeat music) - Pioneer Theatre Company is presenting the new musical adaptation of the classic 1945 film starring Barbara Stanwyck, "Christmas in Connecticut."

Artistic Director Karen Azenberg is here to tell us all about it.

Hi Karen, thanks so much for being here.

Well, this is exciting because it was performed in Connecticut.

This is the first time it's going anywhere else.

- Anywhere else, so it's the second production and we have done substantial rewriting with the authors over the last nine months so it's really new and exciting.

- I know, and you know what I like about it?

It's not typical Christmas.

- No.

It's Connecticut, it's the holiday season, but it's really its own story and it's got a good bit of fun, door-slamming comedy, nice music that you'll hum on the way out and the center of the story is a woman.

- I like that.

- Isn't that fun?

(both laughing) - Yes.

And it's a great story.

Okay, I want you to kind of tell us the story because it is a lot of fun.

- So she's an aspiring magazine writer but can't get any traction in New York, rejected, rejected, rejected, and meets an editor who's like, "Well, you didn't grow up on a farm," and she's like, "No, I grew up in a city," and they conspire to write this column about a Connecticut housewife sharing tips about her life in Connecticut, and it becomes a huge success and then the publisher wants to go to her Connecticut house for Christmas and comedy ensues.

- Yes because it doesn't exist.

She can't cook.

- No her husband doesn't exist her babies don't exist, it's just all fun and games.

- Oh, it just sounds great.

So who wrote the music for this?

- So Jason Howland wrote the music and Jason was with us last year, he is the musical supervisor of "Shucked."

I have known Jason for a while, but that was how we reconnected and he's like, "Hey, I've got this show," and I was like, "Send me the script," and so he was excited to have an opportunity to come back.

He's in the rehearsal room right now working on it so it's exciting.

- Okay, well I'm excited to see it and thank you so much for being here.

Thanks.

- Thank you.

- And if you'd like to know more about the upcoming production of Pioneer Theatre, "Christmas in Connecticut," it will run December 1st through 6th, go to pioneertheatre.org.

Pioneertheatre.org.

I'm Mary Dickson.

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