In the heart of 5th Ward, Texas, it becomes clear that Lil Man’s mom and sister won’t get their Christmas wish, so he enlists the help of Santa’s wild and crazy elves to make sure the holidays are once again merry and bright. A play with music, silly elves, and a lot of heart. Lil’ Man Saves Christmas reminds us that achieving your dreams takes community and courage, and sometimes a little magic from St. Nick. Written by Crystal Rae.

Presented in partnership with Young Audiences of Houston.

Date & Time: 11:00 a.m., Saturday, December 12, 2024
Performance Location: Mangum-Howell Community Center, 2500 Frick Rd. (inside Doss Park), Houston Tx 77038
Tickets: FREE

The Ensemble Theatre

The Mission of The Ensemble Theatre is to preserve African American artistic expression and enlighten, entertain and enrich a diverse community.

The Ensemble Theatre is a non-profit organization founded by George Hawkins in 1976 as a touring company that rehearsed in a church basement. In 2003, the company was awarded $250,000 from the Houston Endowment Inc., with which it retired its original capital campaign debt and made some improvements to the facility. Since 1991, Houston Endowment Inc. has granted a total of $1,220,500 to the Ensemble, including an annual operating grant.

In August 2006, the Ensemble Theatre celebrated its 30-year anniversary, as it launched its 2006/2007 production season. This celebration included the presentation of an award to American actor and director Danny Glover, as the 2006 “Lifetime Achievement” honoree.

Each year the theatre presents a repertoire of critically acclaimed dramas, comedies and musicals that demonstrates the artistic ability of more than 250 professional local, regional and national artists and support staff. A non-profit organization, the Ensemble Theatre also has an educational touring program and a summer young performers training program.[5]

The Ensemble’s mission is to preserve African-American artistic expression. To do so, it collaborates with and presents works by artists such as Joseph A. Walker, Pearl Cleage, Cheryl L. West and Shay Youngblood.[6]

Though the Ensemble is an African-American run troupe, it is colorblind when it comes to welcoming directors, designers, performers, playwrights and audiences. Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson has visited the Ensemble, and influential dramatist Ntozake Shange has directed the troupe. Performers Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee have also offered their support to the company.