When it comes to the annual Jingle Bell Jamboree, choir teacher Ethan Schlesser warns, “This isn’t the kind of concert where we expect the audience to sit and politely clap.”
Yes, some of the borough’s best performers will be on hand to entertain at the Dec. 18 show at the Old First Reformed Church in Park Slope, but audience members are expected to participate, too.
“The first year we did it, we had a singalong that was very low key. It was almost like you were at a friend’s house having a holiday gathering,” said Schlesser, who will perform a vaudeville-style opening number with the church’s irrepressible pastor, Rev. Daniel Meeter (pictured). “For me, it’s important to keep that spirit.”
That couldn’t be more true than in the big finale — a performance of “The 12 Days of Christmas,” where unsuspecting members of the audience are picked to act out the various “gifts.”
“If a group does poorly, we stop the singalong, point at them and say you have to do better again,” said Schlesser. “It’s pandemonium.”
Jingle Bell Jamboree at the Old First Reformed Church [Seventh Avenue at Carroll Street in Park Slope, (718) 638-8300], Dec. 18 at 7 pm. Suggested donation of $10, $5 for children.— Meredith Deliso
