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Krista Detor's Holiday Celebration

The holidays are a season of traditions, and over the past several years singer-songwriter Krista Detor has inaugurated a new one for the Bloomington area: an annual holiday show of music and storytelling. The show grew out of a collaboration with local writers and musicians as a way of celebrating the season through the telling of stories and the singing of songs. It includes performances by Detor of her own holiday compositions.

The theme for this year's show is Letters Home. Detor says the concept, which was suggested by a friend, will expand on the celebration's original premise, incorporating the reading of holiday letters and stories from a variety of backgrounds and faiths. She also plans to bring in her friend Peter Mulvey, the nationally-known singer-songwriter, and she's written some new seasonal music to perform.

A Variety Show

The show's ongoing lineup of skits, spoken word and musical performances puts Detor in mind of a popular 1970s television program.

"It's generally kind of like The Carol Burnett Show," she says, "with me as the host and performer. I bring in guests, but they're not opening acts; they're lateral to me."

Not Just The Frazzled Holiday

Detor's holiday show has become noted for its occasional high-spirited spontaneity. Last year the cheerleaders for a local roller derby team, who'd been celebrating a little too merrily, kept missing their cues, and extended their game of badminton (played with marshmallows) into the audience. Detor laughs when recounting these stories, but says there's more to the show than hijinks.

"I try to encompass the full range of holiday experiences," Detor says. "That includes too much wassail, and insane shopping, but then there's also the light on the snow, and beautiful times with families and the gathering of friends – not just the really frazzled, frenetic holiday."

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