A Candle in the Window
A small group of weary travelers discover the power of the season while trapped in a lonely train station on Christmas Eve. As a blizzard rages outside, the troubled people are forced to turn to each other for companionship. Trying to make them more comfortable is the old stationmaster, Charlie. When the clock strikes midnight, there is a knock on the station door and seven youngsters appear. They've seen the station lights from the nearby church where, in secret, they've been practicing the story of the nativity which they plan to present at regular service. They offer to perform their play for the travelers and afterward, speak to the travelers individually, giving advice which is seemingly wise beyond their years. The next morning, as a new, younger stationmaster lights a Christmas candle, we realize the mysterious stop in the travelers' journey was more than accidental and has given them a renewed spirit and resolve. Full evening.
Productions
Behind The Scenes
PLAYWRIGHT L. DON SWARTZ
TALKS ABOUT
"A CANDLE IN THE WINDOW"
Q: WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE THIS PLAY?
A. I attended a boarding high school, a thousand miles from home, and a college 500 miles from home. I spent 8 years at an impressionable age with strangers in train and bus stations trying to get home for the holidays. Many of the characters I met shared stories that had an impact on me. As a playwright I could attach a happy-ending to their adventures long after another train took them out of my life.
Q. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PART OF LINE IN THE PLAY? WHY?
A. I like the second act with the arrival of the children. It always seems to me like help is on the way when the winter wind blows them into the train station.
Q. WHAT DID YOU TRY TO ACHIEVE WITH THIS PLAY?
A. The idea that Hope can be found anywhere, and even come from a stranger in the middle of the night.
Q. DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD?
A. This is the first original play I ever wrote and it remains my favorite to this day.