A scene from the 1946 classic “It’s a Wonderful Life,” starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed.
There are just certain traditions every holiday season. Things you do, places you go, and movies you watch. For many, the holidays mean it’s time to watch Jimmy Stewart in Frank Capra’s 1946 classic It’s a Wonderful Life.
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This holiday season, however, a local theater company is offering a slightly different take on the classic film. Stages Houston is presenting It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.
The production features actors portraying radio players in the 1940s who are bringing the story to life inside the studio of a radio station with their voices and various props and gadgets to make realistic sound effects.
(L-R) Pamela Vogel, Gabriel Regojo, and DeShae LaShawn of Stages Houston’s production of “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.”
To learn more about the challenges of bringing a story to life this way — and about how the cast and production team navigate the tricky process of retelling such a well-known and beloved story — Houston Matters producer Michael Hagerty visited a rehearsal where he talked with members of the cast and the show’s director, Stages Houston’s artistic director, Derek Charles Livingston.
Stages Houston’s production of It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play runs through Dec. 28.
PHOTOS:
Cast members (L-R) Pamela Vogel, DeShae LaShawn, Christopher Szeto-Joe, and Gabriel Regojo during a rehearsal for Stages Houston’s production of “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.” (Photo Credit: Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media)
Director Derek Charles Livingston (center) talks with cast members during rehearsal. (Photo Credit: Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media)
DeShae LaShawn, Jillian Linton, and Ryan Schabach during rehearsal on Nov. 6, 2025 at Stages Houston. (Photo Credit: Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media)
Props for making various sound effects. (Photo Credit: Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media)
Cast member Pamela Vogel makes a siren sound with a prop. (Photo Credit: Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media)