In August 1946, song-and-dance trio Jim Hardy, Ted Hanover and Lila Dixon perform at a club in New York City ("Steppin' Out With My Baby/I'll Capture Her Heart"). Afterwards, Jim proposes to Lila. She accepts, and he tells her that he bought Mason Farm in Midville, Connecticut, intending for them to leave show business to raise a family ("The Little Things in Life"). Lila is reluctant to give up performing. When Ted and his manager Danny announce that the trio has booked a six-week tour, Jim rejects the offer, but Lila agrees to tour with Ted as a duo, promising to join Jim in Connecticut after the tour. Eager to settle down, Jim moves to Midville ("Blue Skies").
Jim finds the old farmhouse falling apart, and local boy Charlie Winslow, on behalf of the local bank, presents Jim with a bill for back taxes. Jim is visited by the spirited Linda Mason, an aspiring performer-turned-schoolteacher who had lived on the farm. Linda and Jim are attracted to each other and awkwardly express their shared loneliness and longing to move forward with their lives ("Marching Along With Time"). Linda introduces Jim to Louise Badger, an overly enthusiastic farmhand who has worked at Mason Farm since Linda was a child. Jim and Louise tend to the farm with little success. Jim misses Lila; meanwhile, Ted and Lila have a successful tour ("Heat Wave"). Lila finally visits Jim ("It's A Lovely Day Today"), but she breaks off their engagement; she will continue performing with Ted.
By Thanksgiving, Ted and Lila are in Las Vegas ("Plenty to Be Thankful For"), while Jim, Louise, and Linda each eat Thanksgiving dinner alone; Linda laments her loneliness ("Nothing More to Say"). On Christmas Eve, Jim and Louise decorate the farmhouse, noting the irony of decorating a house for only themselves. Jim's old performing friends visit, and he and Louise throw a party ("Shakin' The Blues Away"). Linda arrives and is impressed by the festivities. Jim realizes how much he misses performing. He and Louise decide to turn the farm into an inn – only open on holidays – as a way to satisfy his desire to perform while still living a quiet life most of the year, and to bring in money. Jim will write songs for each holiday, to be performed by him, Linda, and his friends, and decides to have the first performance on New Year's Eve. He plays Linda a Christmas song he wrote as an example of the type of song he might perform at the Inn ("White Christmas").
A week later, "Holiday Inn" is having its inaugural performance, and it proves popular ("Happy Holiday"). To ring in both the new year and Jim's new business, Linda performs publicly for the first time in many years ("Let's Start the New Year Right"). Ted drunkenly wanders into the inn, interrupts the song and begins dancing with her. Jim jealously punches Ted in the face, and Linda storms out.
Ted wakes up, hung over; Lila has left their act to marry a millionaire in Texas; he cannot remember who he danced with before passing out, but he decides she must be his new dance partner. Jim, worried that Ted will steal Linda from him, pretends not to have seen Ted's new partner. Ted sets out to dance with every woman he sees, trying to track down the right one ("You're Easy to Dance With"). Linda is humiliated by Jim and Ted's behavior; Jim apologizes and offers to start over ("Let's Take an Old-Fashioned Walk"). She agrees to give him another chance, and in time they begin a relationship.
By the Valentine's Day show, Jim loves Linda, and he writes a song about her for the Inn ("Be Careful, It's My Heart"). While he sings it to her, Ted walks in, realizes Linda is the girl he seeks. Jim objects that he does not want Ted to steal Linda from him, but Ted and Linda reassure him and perform together for the first time, headlining the performance. Jim cues the band to change style and tempo several times, attempting to prevent Ted and Linda from getting too close to each other ("Cheek to Cheek"). Jim apologizes for sabotaging the number, but he does so again in the Easter show the following month by entering at the end of the song and singing with Linda and Ted ("Easter Parade"). Ted asks Danny to put an end to Jim's meddling. Danny reveals to Ted that two Hollywood producers are interested in putting Ted and Lila in a movie, and they will attend the next Holiday Inn performance. Louise hears this and calls Lila, asking her to come to the Inn.
As Linda prepares for the Independence Day performance ("Song of Freedom"), Louise locks her in the barn to prevent the producers from seeing her. With Linda missing, Ted performs a solo tap number with fireworks ("Let's Say It With Firecrackers"). Lila enters the barn, revealing that the man she left Ted for owed millions rather than owning them, and, not knowing who Linda is, she mentions the producers. Linda assumes Jim has sabotaged her again and locks Lila in the barn, returning to the Inn to join Ted for the end of his number. As they exit the stage, Linda confronts Jim, but he has no knowledge of the producers nor of Lila's presence, and Louise admits she orchestrated the sabotage. As Linda forgives Jim, Danny reveals that the producers want to make a movie about Holiday Inn, starring Ted and Linda with Jim as a songwriter and consultant, but Jim wants to stay at the Inn. Linda is hurt by Jim's stoicism and leaves with Ted to make the movie ("Nothing More to Say" (reprise)).
Jim and Louise spend another Thanksgiving alone; with no headliners, they cancel the Holiday Inn shows. Jim finally decides to find Linda in Hollywood. On the set of the movie, Linda is having a tough time with the fictionalization of the story, interrupting shots and proving difficult for the director and producers to work with. As she sings "White Christmas," Jim enters the studio and sings with her. As the production halts, Jim proposes to Linda. She accepts, quitting the film to be with him. Danny objects, but Ted lets her go. It is early in production, and Linda is replaced by Lila. Later in Midville, Ted and Lila reunite, and Linda and Jim are married on the farm, vowing to continue performing at the Inn ("Finale").
((There you have it. You all know the drill. Add your posts below, and have fun!))
Anya had to study up on the film classic that was much before her time. She had an appreciation for the arts, and wanted to learn about what had inspired the play. Though in her opinion the story seemed somewhat outdated, Anya still found a charm in it, and put her all into the performance.
She found that she was even getting into the holiday spirit herself, which wasn't something that she expected. Her mood was lighter and she let her guard down, being more playful on and off the stage with her fellow performers. She may have even hid a mistletoe or three backstage in an attempt to lure certain someone's beneath it.
Asher felt a kinship with Ted Hanover. Life on the road was no life, no matter how you might try to frame it. There had been plenty of performing nights before his time in Rhydin that had turned into a blur of drink and drugs and all the women that could not replace the one who had got away. So the theater's jester poured his heart into the role, making Ted's passion his passion and Ted's pain his pain. Unlike past shows where he had put on a show of his own for his fellow castmates behind the scenes, Asher instead retreated to the sanctuary of his apartment, leaving swiftly each night after curtain call, not returning until the next rehearsal or show.
"There are only two things. Truth and lies. Truth is indivisible, hence it cannot recognize itself; anyone who wants to recognize it has to be a lie."
--Franz Kafka
Of late, Maggie had spent a great deal of time backstage at the theater. She handed out props and otherwise made herself useful to her theater family. The Shanachie had become a refuge of sorts for the teenager. There was a sense of warmth and belonging that she didn't find in other places she frequented. Instead of treating her like an outsider, the theater troupes and ballet company had always made her welcome. They helped her find her place in that magical world. She learned her lines, her songs, and the dance steps. In that respect, she was like everyone else. It helped her cope with what was normal for her, but would have been chaos to most. Most normal children and teenagers didn't spend their time talking to spirits.
"And those who have not swords can still die upon them." - Eowyn, shieldmaiden of Rohan
