Just nine days before Christmas of 2005 the theatrical community mourned the passing of John Langstaff, the founder of a contemporary, staged solstice celebration. He had suffered a stroke in Switzerland while visiting one of his two daughters.
Langstaff's whole life seemed to have revolved around Christmas. He had been born on Christmas Eve in 1920. While a child, he watched as his parents held impressive caroling parties. He later learned about processions, rituals, and the use of brass instruments while attending an Episcopal Church choir school.
From the choir school Langstaff took his rich baritone voice to Julliard in New York City. Later he studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. Langstaff needed to discontinue his studies in order to spend four Christmas seasons overseas during World War II.
Even the War did not prevent Langstaff from using music to celebrate Christmas. He worked with members of his barracks, teaching them a 17th century Christmas song that had been written by William Boyce. He taught the men how to perform the song as a round. They found it gave them an added way to pass the time when they were not required to be on the battlefield.
In 1957, after 12 seasons of Christmas, not 12 days of Christmas, Langstaff put on the first of his staged solstice performances. He used traditions from many cultures, and he called it Christmas Revels. In a carnival-like atmosphere the characters spoke about death and rebirth. This was then a totally new way to look at Christmas.
The New York public did not shower great praise on that first performance. Several weeks later the residents of Washington D.C. demonstrated that they could be far more receptive. In 1966 Langstaff put on the first T.V. production of his program. It was part of an NBC "Hallmark Hall of Fame." Eventually some measure of fame did come into the life of John Langstaff. By 2005 Langstaff had anticipated the presentation of his Christmas program in nine different U.S. cities.
The revival of Langstaff's program began in 1971, five years after that first T.V. performance. The revival was initiated when a little girl, Langstaff's daughter, saw in her father's Christmas program something with the potential to connect people of varied backgrounds. Her motivation proved to have lasting benefits. He
Three years later Langstaff met a woman who would become a long-time friend. That friend was Susan Cooper.
When Susan sought to put Langstaff's program in the context of present-day Christmas events, she wanted to avoid parallels with the performances that focused only on elements of the 12 days of Christmas. Langstaff's Christmas program was more than that. In speaking with a writer from the Los Angeles Times, Cooper defined Langstaff as "a cross between a very gifted artist and a missionary for theatrical celebration."
A Times writer also spoke with the artistic director of the Revels performance in Oakland. He had known Langstaff well. The director highlighted the nature of the program's music. He said, "... the older material has had a palpable power. People respond to it. Jack knew that."