The Beatles have come a long way from their records being burned in the Bible Belt to their music being performed in church. But it makes perfect sense. Most Beatles songs are about love and peace--global or personal.
So for the 11th year, the Epic Theater Company is staging "Let It Be Christmas" at Community Christian Church's Yellow Box Theater in Naperville.
"Let It Be Christmas" is the nativity story of the Gospel--according to Matthew, Mark, John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
However, this is no stoners' stunt, such as when people were playing Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon," while watching "The Wizard of Oz," and somehow it all seemed to fit together.
No, "Let It Be Christmas" is a brilliantly conceived and performed rock opera that seamlessly weaves samples, snippets, and sometimes entire Beatles songs into the long and winding road to Bethlehem.
The two-act, two-hour musical features a rock band, orchestra, professional-level singing, and colorful choreographed dancing by children, young adults, and grownups.
The rollicking musical is church friendly, meaning there are no song lyrics that reference sex or drugs. But there is plenty of that old-time rock and roll, 40 timeless Beatles tunes, as well as traditional Christmas hymns.
All four Beatles were brought up in church but none of them were professing Christians. John Lennon in fact caught hell in 1966 for saying that the group was "more popular than Jesus," touching off short-lived Beatles protests that simmered mostly in the South during their summer tour of the United States that year.
But their Christian upbringing must have either deliberately or subconsciously informed their songwriting. How else to explain these spiritually lifting lyrics from the song "Let It Be"?
"And when the brokenhearted people living in the world agree, there will be an answer. Let it be. For though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see. There will be an answer. Let it be."
That classic was the showstopper at the Friday night performance, sung gospel style by Aretha Franklin-soundalike Renae Taylor, who played The Prophetess.
And the late Lennon's 1980 solo hit, "Beautiful Boy," from his last album, "Double Fantasy," was lovingly sung over the baby Jesus by Maive Doyle and Nick Welter, Mary and Joseph, respectively.
The acting couple also sang Beatles verses to which any husband and wife could relate, from "If I fell in love with you, would you promise to be true?" to "We can work it out."
The deceased Beatle George Harrison was a clever word player, so he would have appreciated the cast's ensemble and shepherds singing his "Here Comes the Sun" to announce the birth of the Savior.
There are many angels in the cast and they all sing, well, angelically. One female cherub does a soaring rendition of the Paul McCartney solo classic "Maybe I'm Amazed." The lyrics take on new meaning when sung to God:
"Maybe I'm amazed at the way you love me all the time. Maybe I'm afraid of the way I love you. Maybe I'm amazed at the way you pulled me out of time, and hung me on a line. Maybe I'm amazed at the way I really need you."
The audience at the nearly sold-out, 1,200-seat theater was wide ranging in ages. And everyone seemed to love the show, but especially the Baby Boomers, who applauded approvingly when four of the cast members recreated the iconic album cover of The Beatles walking across London's Abbey Road, where their famed recording studio was located.
Beatle-philes in the crowd also couldn't help but notice that the Three Wise Men were dressed like Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, from the landmark 1967 album of the same name.
The massive cast took their well-earned curtain calls while the fabled reprise of that title track was enthusiastically played and sung:
"We'd like to thank you once again...it's getting very near the end."
But it is not quite the end of the show's three-weekend run. The remaining performances are today at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Friday, Dec. 21, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Dec. 22, at 3 p.m.
Tickets may be purchased at https://communitychristian.org/let-it-be-christmas/. Community Christian Church's Yellow Box Theater is at 1635 Emerson Lane, at the corner of Ogden Avenue and Rickert Drive, Naperville.
And "Let It Be Christmas" is the greatest group telling the greatest story ever told.
