Hack and Slash, the popular comedy duo, evoked holiday nostalgia with their special seasonal production in December at the Chesapeake Arts Center.

By Dylan Roche

Part charity event, part nostalgic holiday special, “The Hack and Slash Christmas Special—In Color” enjoyed another successful run at the Chesapeake Arts Center(CAC) in December. The annual performance has grown to be the biggest Baltimore Christmas comedy event, and it doesn’t take the omniscience of Santa Claus to see why.

Comedy duo Hack and Slash — comprised of John Davis (“Hack”) and Spencer Humm (“Slash”) — host the production. The two are best known for their “Hack and Slash Shakespeare Massacre,” which has garnered countless fans at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, the two enjoyed a successful regional tour this fall (including a sold-out run at the CAC in October).

With the stage set as a cozy New York City apartment, the show evokes the nostalgic celebrity-hosted Christmas variety shows of Hollywood’s golden age. The audience is even encouraged to come dressed in pajamas, to create the feeling of being at home.

In keeping with the spirit of the season, the comedy event served to collect resources for numerous charity projects. Over the course of four performances, one ton of clothing and one ton of food were collected. Food was donated to the Maryland Food Bank and clothing was donated to Interfaith Works in Rockville. Audience members also had the opportunity to sign up for a Habitat for Humanity build. The money from ticket sales went to sponsor global clean water projects.

The charity fundraisers aimed to touch upon all necessities by focusing on the staples of food, water, clothing, and shelter. And by having the chance to donate goods — as well as see pictures of where the money was going — the audience was able to connect more directly with the sense of the mission. “We like that part of our mission of charity is to let people know where the money is going and have a sense of what it is for,” explains Humm of the event’s benevolent goal.

Hack and Slash also took the opportunity to showcase the efforts of countless other charities dear to the hearts of their audience members. A segment in the show known as the Miracle Machine featured a slideshow of pictures featuring the individual charity projects in which audience members participated.

A comedy show by Hack and Slash always promises to be hilarious and filled with lots of good fun, and the Christmas special was no exception. Filled with plenty of entertaining Christmas skits, music performances, and other bits, the variety show included performances by guest music groups and comedians. Appearing in the show were The Rogues, Maia Rodriguez, The London Broil, Hey Nunnie Nunnie, Daisy O’Danny, Michael Rosman, The Christmas Ninjas, the Christmas Special Orchestra, and Comedy Central’s Kyle Cease.

Despite the huge venue, the show was made wonderfully intimate by use of the dual screens on either side of the stage, which showed close-details of what was happening on stage. The screens were also used to incorporate videos and slideshows into the performance, such as a clay-animation parody of the classic Rankin/Bass specials.

The annual production will be back for December 2012, maintaining its core charity mission, and keeping the show fresh with new entertainers to add to the popular cast. Meanwhile, Hack and Slash hope to continue workshopping their popular Shakespeare Massacre.

Don’t miss the next chance to catch a Hack and Slash performance—follow their schedule on their website at www.hackandslash.com.