OCALA, FL (352today.com) – If you missed it last year, “A Tuna Christmas”–the middle play of the comedic Greater Tuna Series penned by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears and Ed Howard–has returned to the Ocala Civic Theatre stage and is well on its way to becoming something of a local tradition.
This hilarious seasonal romp is set in Greater Tuna, “the third-smallest town in Texas,” and concerns the hijinks surrounding the municipality’s annual Yuletide yard display competition (vandalized by a dastardly “phantom”) and production of the classic “A Christmas Carol” (endangered by unpaid utility bills and amateur thespians). First mounted in 1989 and nominated for multiple theater awards, it’s an irreverent take on Lone Star tropes, small-town drama and the sort of wildly wacky cultural confusion that only seems to take place when the holiday season is kicking into high gear.
Two gifted performers take on multiple characters in this year’s production: Scott Fitzgerald, a veteran of several Civic Theatre plays and president of The Podcast Authority, reprises his roles from last year’s run, and Paul Pierce, who’s starred in “A Tuna Christmas” hundreds of times and comes to the Civic stage after 35 years as producing artistic director at the Springer Opera House in Columbus, Georgia.
This year’s Civic Theatre production runs through Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. There will be 12 performances: Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. The show is rated PG.
Tickets are $35-$40 for adults and $17-20 for ages 18 and younger, based on seating section, at ocalacivictheatre.com. Purchase tickets through the Civic box office in person or over the phone at (352) 236-2274, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.