It’s like a christmas carol, but…ya know…worse.

After two years of sold out performances, Calliope Stage announces its holiday production - The Greatest Christmas Story Ever Told by Two People, or…A Christmas Carol? - returns for another year!

One person plays Scrooge and one person plays Everyone Else. A unique theatrical holiday experience full of hilarity and heart for the whole family. The adaptation - developed right here in WNC - features Dickens’ classic tale infused with improv, a live crappy piano player (probably), and a little bit of good ol’ fashioned audience interaction - A Christmas Carol meets Whose Line Is It Anyway?

get my tickets

MEET THE CAST & CREATIVE team

COLIN WASMUND | DIRECTOR

Colin is thrilled to be once again collaborating with Calliope Stage! Colin played the role of “Everyone Else” in last year’s production of The Greatest Christmas Story Ever Told by Two People or, A Christmas Carol? Other Calliope credits as include New Works Happy Hour (Actor - The Last Expedition, Junk to Junk), Calliope Shorts – Campfire Tales (Writer, Director, Actor), and Calliope Shorts – Firsts (Writer). Originally arriving in WNC in 2016, Colin has been involved in numerous theatre, film, and commercial projects since making the Southeast his home. Prior to that, Colin worked professionally on stage and screen as an actor in the Chicago market. He currently teaches acting, improv, and playwriting at Western Carolina University. Thanks for supporting the arts!

MAGGIE ASHLEY | SCROOGE

SCROOGE. Maggie Ashley is thrilled to return to the stage with Calliope, particularly in sharing one of her all-time favorite stories, A Christmas Carol. Maggie has previously been involved with Calliope Stage, performing and directing in Shorts: Firsts and Shorts: Campfire Stories. In addition to Christmas Carol, she is currently working on the Nectar New Works Scriptwriting Contest. Maggie and her husband, Scott, have lived throughout the country, but are proud to call Sylva, NC, home. Maggie is a graduate of Flagler College in St. Augustine, FL, and has worked professionally in West Coast theatre productions with Berkeley Playhouse, The Custom Made Theatre Company, We Players, and the San Francisco Olympians Festival. Unlike Scrooge, Maggie enjoys singing Christmas carols before Thanksgiving and tomfoolery of all forms, particularly the forms involving her 6-year-old daughter, the queen herself, Elizabeth. Maggie is grateful for the opportunity to bring live theatre to Western North Carolina, and thankful for Calliope Stage’s presence in our town.

HANNAH WILLIAMS | EVERYONE ELSE

Hannah Williams is so excited to be working with Calliope Stage again! Hannah has previously worked with Calliope Stage for Calliope Shorts: Campfire Stories and Calliope Shorts: Firsts! Hannah is an actor, director, and intimacy director based in North Carolina. Previous performance credits include The Frankenstein Rubrics (Mary Shelley, Magnetic Theatre), A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Sibella, Parkway Playhouse), and The Spitfire Grill (Percy, Dunes Summer Theatre). Hannah is Assistant Faculty with Theatrical Intimacy Education and holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Millikin University. Hannah serves as Chair of the Disability Inclusion Committee for the Southeastern Theatre Conference and is an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation. Pictures of her cats can be found on Twitter and Instagram at @mshannahcat.

DANI GAMMA | STAGE MANAGER

Dani Gama is excited to be working for the first time with Calliope Stage. Dani has been involved in theatre since they were young and are ecstatic to be a part of this. Previous Credits include Elephants Graveyard (Stage Manager), She Kills Monsters (Stage Manager), Clue (Assistant Stage Manager), Romeo and Juliet (Assistant Stage Manager). Dani is an alumni of Western Carolina University, Class of 2023. They are happy to be working again with Colin Wasmund and the show's extremely talented actors. Dani wishes everyone A Happy Holiday Season.

ASHLEE WASMUND | ARTISTIC PRODUCER & CREATOR

Ashlee is a director, producer, choreographer, sometimes actor, and pretend writer based in North Carolina. Upcoming: The Greatest Hits on Route 66 (NYC January 2024); Recent: My 80 Year-Old Boyfriend (Arizona Theatre Company, Human Race Theatre Co., Idaho Rep), H*tler’s Tasters (Off Broadway, New Light Theater Project) (‘Best of Fringe’, The Stage UK), A Ghost of Christmas Past (original radio drama and stage adaptation). Some favorite companies have been New Light Theater Project (NYC), Milwaukee Rep, Drury Lane (Chicago), and Merrimack Rep (Boston) and bringing works to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the IUGTE Physical Theatre conference in Vienna, Austria. Prior to mountain life, Ashlee worked locally in Chicago as an actor, director, choreographer, and educator. She is the Founding Artistic Lead of Calliope Stage Company, a Resident Artist with New Light Theater Project, and serves on the Faculty of WCU’s School of Stage & Screen. ashleewasmund.com

CORY PHELPS | CREATOR

DUSTIN WHITEHEAD | CREATOR

Dustin Whitehead is a theatre artist and filmmaker from Chicago IL. Dustin can be seen in numerous independent films as well as the nationally televised shows Chicago PD, Chicago Fire, and Your Worst Nightmare. He has produced multiple feature films including his directorial debut, Hero, which has played at multiple film festivals. University theatre directing credits include Much Ado About Nothing, The Wolves, Angels in America, and This is our Youth. His Chicago theatre acting credits include The Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Dramatists, American Theatre Company, Redtwist, The Inconvenience, Lakeside Shakespeare, and Congo Square. He teaches acting at UofSC. He received his BFA in Performance from Jacksonville University and MFA in Acting from The Theatre School at DePaul University. He also studied filmmaking in Singapore at NYU Tisch Asia. Dustin loves working with Calliope Stage & Destination Theatre.

BRIAN BUSH | creative contributor

Brian Bush is a current senior in the Musical Theatre program at Western Carolina University and is thrilled to contribute to this fantastic project by Calliope Stage! Recent Credits include: Ricky Potts (Ride the Cyclone), Jean-Michel (R&H’s Cinderella), and Fester (The Addams Family). A big thanks to Ashlee for providing him with the opportunity to write such a fun and nerdy piece about an instrument he just learned. Instagram: @bw.bush