Smiles abound at the arc{hive} during a special send off to 2024

Holiday variety show puts a capper to local arts scene calendar year

By Mike Rego
Posted 12/30/24

One of the last events on the local arts scene of the calendar year took place Sunday night, Dec. 29, when the arc{hive} book + snackery on Market Street hosted a well-received holiday variety show, …

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Smiles abound at the arc{hive} during a special send off to 2024

Holiday variety show puts a capper to local arts scene calendar year

Posted

One of the last events on the local arts scene of the calendar year took place Sunday night, Dec. 29, when the arc{hive} book + snackery on Market Street hosted a well-received holiday variety show, the second such endeavor held the establishment.

Owners Uriah and Janet Donnelly welcomed patrons to close out 2024 with an evening of frivolity featuring area artists Skip Daniels, Chad Anctil and "The Players of Market Street." And the cosy confines was filled with a receptive audience.

According to his bio, Daniels is the self-anointed "Prince of Mystery." He's described as "a fearlessly odd, fiendishly funny and award-winning illusionist," who uses "skillfully done classics and unusual original magic to create his weird world of comical adventure." Daniels didn't disappoint, keeping those in attendance laughing with some off-beat and at times "blue" material.

Anctil is a renowned puppeteer, known most recently for his giant puppets like "Gumdrop," the 12-foot tall pink monster, who has been seen performing regionally with the award-winning Providence Drum Troupe. Last weekend, during his first appearance at arc{hive}, he received a warm welcome with his opening performance.

Uriah Donnelly, himself, is a member of the "The Players" along with Ray Klemmer, Zoe Crook, Janet Moscarello, Jules Huang, Jeff Danielian and Carol Wild. It's a group of singers, musicians, actors and writers performing a hearty holiday-themed sketch, "A Chicken Man Holiday Special," to close out the evening.

"We started the whole thing as a way to showcase folks' talents that are different than the traditional 'guy with guitar' act," Uriah Donnelly explained of the show's origins.

He continued, "Genuinely, most of what we do is to build community, bringing folks together for unique experiences and this show hopes to do just that. With all that’s going on in the world and the stress of the holiday season, we hope this event lets people take their minds off things for just a while. Putting it together and rehearsing with the Players has certainly done that for us."

— East Bay Media Group and eastbayri.com contributing photographer Julie Furtado shot the accompanying gallery of photos.

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.