Judy's Scary Little Christmas: Chicago Sun Times Article

Garland's Star Reborn in 'Scary Little' Send-up

Jennifer Connelly as Judy Garland in

"Judy's Scary Little Christmas"

By Misha Davenport

November 25, 2005

Garland's star reborn in 'Scary Little' send-up

Jennifer Connelly would like nothing better than to forget her troubles and get happy.

Trouble is, she has the daunting task of playing Judy Garland in Hell in a Handbag's holiday spoof "Judy's Scary Little Christmas."

"She's a legend with a capital L," Connelly said. "I actually made myself sick during the auditions just thinking about it."

"I hope I've done one-third of what people are expecting," she adds. "Garland is an icon and I hope I do her justice."

Perhaps a fistful of Judy's favorite pills -- or "dolls" as she might call them -- are in order to calm Connelly's nerves.

Judging from the reception the musical-comedy show has received in its Los Angeles production, Connelly needn't fret too much. The show received raves from the Los Angeles Times and the Hollywood Reporter.

The premise of the show is that Garland is shooting a Christmas special that she hopes will be her latest vehicle for a comeback. She has "invited" you into her home for the holidays to share the season with her and meet all of her friends, who all just so happen to be A-list celebrities who are very talented. The list of guests include Bing Crosby, Liberace and Joan Crawford.

Connelly said the script brings back memories of Christmas variety specials on TV.

"Watching Perry Como, Bing Crosby and Andy Williams was the best part of Christmas for me," she said. "After Mom and Dad went to sleep, we'd act them out in the living room -- and this [show] is just like that. It's nice to go back."

While the show doesn't feature any of Garland's signature songs due to copyright, it does have a score of original songs by Joe Patrick Ward, written in the same style.

"The music definitely pays homage to the era," Connelly said. "Some of the ballads are written with those Garland power moments, when vocally you could rip paint off the walls."

“Judy’s Scary Little Christmas” runs Dec. 2 through Jan. 7 at Strawdog Theatre, 3829 N. Broadway. Tickets, $15-$25. Call (312) 409-4357.