Left to right; Staff Sgt. Andrew Garcia, Sgt. 1st Class Bryan Uhl, Staff Sgt. Mikki Skinner, Sgt. 1s... VIEW ORIGINAL
WEST POINT, N.Y. (Dec. 11, 2015) -- The U.S. Military Academy at West Point Band held its annual concert "West Point Holiday" December 5-6 at West Point's Eisenhower Hall Theatre.
Each year the West Point Band brings the holidays to the Hudson Valley. This tradition caters to the whole family with traditional tunes, sing-alongs, dancing and everything in between. This performance was also recorded by FOX News to be included in a West Point Holiday special to air later in December.
A West Point Holiday centers around world-class music, but the performance itself is so much more.
This year's show revolved around the story of an enthusiastic elf from the North Pole, played by Staff Sgt. Chris Venditti, who helps the West Point Band get ready for Santa's visit. There was never a dull moment as the music - all arranged in-house by band members Sgt. Major Douglas Richard, Master Sgt. Mike Reifenberg and Staff Sgt. Noah Taylor - took the audience through all of their favorite holiday songs in a wide variety of musical styles from pop versions of "Shake It Up Christmas" and "Sleigh Ride," a country version of "No Place Like Home for the Holidays" and a rich and traditional "White Christmas." The talented vocalists of the West Point Band's Master Sgt. MaryKay Messenger, Sgt. 1st Class Carla Loy Song, and Staff Sgts. Jeremy Gaynor and Emily McAleesejergins brought the music to life captivating young and old alike.
Audience members got the chance to actively participate in "The Twelve Days of Christmas," a crowd favorite, in which each section represents a different day and competes against each other to see who could be the loudest and most exuberant.
This year's production was put on with the help of Fiona Santos and Jason Brantman from the Broadway Training Center in Westchester, New York, who expertly helped hone the script and choreography.
Despite the number of vocal features the band's performance was never secondary and the instrumentalists were every bit as much a part of the action on stage with cheering, singing and even fake snowball fights.
The performance ended in traditional fashion with a visit from Santa Claus, who visited with all the children in the lobby after the performance.
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