With the holiday season whirlwind of events, enjoying the classic joys of music, storytelling and tradition can fall by the wayside. But thanks to the iconically madcap Reduced Shakespeare Company, you can blend all your favorites into a single rollicking night. On Thursday, December 4, 2025, the Reduced Shakespeare Company’s finest fruitcakes take center stage at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts. Their “Ultimate Christmas Show (Abridged)” promises festive, funny, physical family fun.
Experience Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Saturnalia and Christmas Simultaneously on December 4
The Ultimate Christmas Show (Abridged) is set during the Annual Holiday Variety Show and Christmas Pageant at St. Everybody’s Non-Denominational Universalist Church. Their motto? All faiths are welcome because we’ll believe anything.
This irreverent show-within-a-show, like most Reduced Shakespeare Company adventures is considered PG-13 for comic depictions of violence, mild innuendo, bawdy language and the occasional rude word. Or, as troupe founders call it, PG-13: Pretty Good if You’re Thirteen.
Audience Participation, Singing and Laughter Galore at the Washington Center
The “Ultimate Christmas Show (Abridged)” rests on the limber comedic backs of only three performers who play all the parts. When the St. Everybody’s pageant performers fail to show up, this trio of intrepid souls must fill in…for everyone. “Part of the fun is all the quick changes and seeing the actors playing many different roles,” says Martin.
With their manic switches and nonstop antics, audiences are sure to have a very – in Reduced Shakespeare Company parlance – Happy Merry Chrismakwanukkahanzukkah indeed. And the Washington Center is your only chance to see it right here in Thurston County!
Guarantee a Happy Holidays Thanks to the Reduced Shakespeare Company
If you’re unfamiliar with their work, the Reduced Shakespeare Company “is a three-person comedy troupe that takes long, serious topics and turns them into short, sharp comedies,” explains Martin. “Three of our shows ran in repertory at the Criterion Theatre in London’s West End for nearly 10 years. We’ve performed at The White House, on NPR and the BBC, as well as Off-Broadway and in 14 countries overseas.”
Tickets to the Olympia performance are on sale now. Purchase online, by calling 360.753.8586 or at the Washinton Center Box Office. The Box Office is open from noon until 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday and two hours before any ticketed event. Email boxoffice@washingtoncenter.org with questions.
Caroling Into the New Year at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts
Keep your holiday spirit alive all season long with Studio West’s Nutcracker, Colbie Caillat and Gavin DeGraw’s “Christmas Tour 2025,” the Masterworks Choral Ensemble presenting “Holding the Light,” Ballet Northwest’s “Nutcracker” and the SOGO Community “Messiah Sing-Along.”
The Washington Center’s event calendar and Facebook page have the latest updates or sign up for their newsletter and never miss a beat. 2025-2026 subscription information is also available so grab seats to next year’s favorites today.
You can follow the Reduced Shakespeare Company on Facebook, Instagram and X or subscribe to their podcast. Check out tour dates online as well as show synopses. Before your schedule fills up completely, get tickets to the Ultimate Christmas Show (Abridged) today and Happy Merry Chrismakwanukkahanzukkah to everyone.
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