For a Christmas that is anything but ordinary see the all-star cast in "No Ordinary Christmas" early next month.

The Relavations Group actor and producer Monroe Kent III, who has graced stages in both London's West End and on and off Broadway productions, spoke to The Royal Gazette about the show, which will showcase Bermuda's finest talent and a star studded cast of international performers.

"No Ordinary Christmas" runs from December 3 to December 7 at the Ruth Seaton James Centre for the Performing Arts, as part of the "Feed Your Spirit" Holiday Gift Weekend.

Mr. Kent explained his journey to "No Ordinary Christmas."

"This all started many years ago in the West End in the play 'Unforgettable,' which was written by a gentleman called Clarke Peters who was tired of doing the one man show," he said.

"So I ended up in this incredible piece that he had done and when I came back home to America I was like, 'what have I got, what's going on here?'

"And a long story short is that I took 'Unforgettable' on tour across America. So I found myself in this strange space between actor, producer and I realised that there are other people that are dependent on me now.

Incredible musicians who put their instruments down and go back to teaching, because the work isn't there.

"So I've been taking on other projects and I guess this is what I do now, I am a producer and that was about six or seven years ago."

He then saw a production of "Black Nativity" by Langston Hughes.

Mr. Kent said: "It had such an impact on my head, and it was nothing but a musical, but something about it made sense and something about it created a flow.

"Not long after that I saw a 'Christmas Carol' but not the watered down version that I think that most people see, and it is pretty heavy and if you see it full on, it is pretty heavy.

"It is not as fanciful as some of them and it was Biblically based, so somewhere in there these things began to merge for me and I did an off-Broadway showing of 'Black Nativity.'

"Three years later it became 'Nativity' with some wonderful performers like Phylicia Rashad, BeBe Wynans and Stephanie Mills amongst others.

"About the same time I began working with a group called the 'Broadway Inspirational Voices' and we were recording a CD called 'Great Joy' and we ended up doing in the middle of July singing 'oh come, oh come Emmanuel' and it ended up being nominated for an Emmy and meanwhile this show 'No Ordinary Christmas' is being designed in the back of my head for years, so I just started writing the music.

"Then I thought, why reinvent the wheel, this beautiful stuff is sitting there right in front of my face and so I just stopped writing and thought, 'it is all right here for me.'

"We ended up putting it together and it became 'No Ordinary Christmas,' I thought, why am I fighting this, all these great components were there, so just piece them together and let it be."

In many ways, said Mr. Kent, "No Ordinary Music" became a vehicle to get this music 'Great Joy' out to be heard and listened to because it is phenomenal.

"Some of the top choirs and it requires difficulty, there are Grammy winners and Tony winners, and the only reason they come together is to sing," he said.

"All of these people leave their homes to go to Broadway, but they leave their churches also, and it became a group of people supporting one another. So when I tell you that on any given Tuesday there is Phylicia Rashad, she is just a choir member.

"They are just people and being people again and that is what we have been doing for years."

Regarding bring "No Ordinary Christmas" to the Island, he said: "Bermuda is an interesting story, because by this, I am full on producing and I believe that I was found and asked about my Christmas show and that caused me to take a look at Bermuda.

"I have been at this for about three years trying to get this show to Bermuda, but originally all I was doing was bringing a show.

"And as I began to understand Bermuda and how strong the faith-based community was, I thought, 'wait a minute, I'm missing a great opportunity here' and that opportunity became that I am doing a lot of work that I shouldn't be doing.

"The opportunity is not for me, it is for them. You have all these churches; somebody is doing something all over this Island for Christmas and all that is required was for somebody to write it down that on the third at 8 pm you can go here or at 9 pm you can go there, and to present that as part of the Bermuda Winter Festival.

"And all of a sudden, you are taking Bermuda's slowest tourism time and things are happening, putting Christ back in Christmas.

"So it seemed like a no-brainer for me."

"No Ordinary Christmas" is the centrepiece to the entire event.

There is also a fashion show component, talks and other things going on during the month of December.

Some of the Bermudian performers include Daren Herbert who was in Dream Girls, Larrita Adderley, who also won seven Amateur Nights at the Apollo and Bermuda Idol 2007 winner and Singing for Success II winner. Singing for Success runner up Canjelae Taylor and Singing for Success I winner Twanée Butterfield and Cindy Smith, who played Effie in last year's Gilbert & Sullivan production of Dreamgirls.

"When you come here and you see all of this incredible raw talent, there is no reason to hone it, if they can use it and be paid for it," he said.

Although, he did have a suggestion: "During the auditions only one person showed up with a picture with their resume.

"And then I said at the end of the day, how do I remember you out of the other 20 people. I had incredible singers come up and sing and when I asked what were they, a few said, 'I am a soprano.'

"I said, 'are you just lazy, or do you not want this job.' They looked at me as if I had lost my mind, but I said, 'you are a soprano, why should you walk out of here leaving the rest to my imagination, so whatever you have or could offer, show me.'

"People thought I was being mean, but the truth is I was asked to not let this talent leave here and go anywhere else thinking that it is good enough when it is not.'

"And it would be a shame to not have a picture with your resume, because it is like not having the tools of your trade."

But within it all, Mr. Kent explained that he realised why he was here.

"The talent here is just ridiculous!" he said.

"It is going to be a brightening show, in the sense that the talent is going to be off the chain, and how do I keep it from being four hours long, while I try to give all this talent its due. Each of these kids could give you a two-hour concert, but we'd be here for three days.

"I didn't need to bring a New York cast."

He had hoped there was a more multicultural cast of performers during the auditions, as the show is reflective of that.

"No Ordinary Christmas" takes on a play format.

"The long and short of it is opposed to Ebenezer Scrooge, there is a teacher who sets out an assignment before the holiday break, which was to write about a historical event that still affects us today," he said.

"One of the students wrote about Thomas Edison and the invention of the light bulb and others wrote about the nativity and how it effects us today.

"So the teacher asked, 'is that historical?'

"And so therein lies the journey because she has difficulty accepting that this child did what was expected of him.

"So what happens is other than 'The Nutcracker' there is very little new, and when there is, it doesn't include the nativity. In a landscape of a barren or dry heart and a dessert has oasis' and it has mirages, so I can definitely have a nativity in one of them.

"King Herod is very modern and he has a cell phone and his advisor is Madame Cleo, and she insists that this child is being born so he has her taken out.

"It is a very warped trip that we are about to take, but it is all underscored by this music, it is all underscored by this of almost surrealistic journey that art can take.

"There are words that I don't want to use, like magical, because we have suddenly developed issues with that word and religion, but theatre should be magical. You should go home and dream and be inspired.

"You see I paint with very broad strokes and when I am finished, you will see you in it - not me!"

See tomorrow's Lifestyle for schedule of activities.