With December 25 still three weeks off, the Reader performing arts listings so far include ten shows with “Christmas” in the title, of which five are versions of A Christmas Carol. And that’s just the tip of the North Polar iceberg. Reverent holiday theater is so ubiquitous it’s bred an almost equally ubiquitous backlash. Here are our reviews of some of the alternative holiday shows. —Tony Adler
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The Feats of Strength: Six New Plays for Surviving the Holidays Emma Stanton’s Where Did Everybody Go? epitomizes the impudent, dyspeptic tone this showcase of holiday one-acts aspires to. A hyperbolically dysfunctional family’s “nice Thanksgiving dinner” collapses under the strain of a micromanaging mother who obsesses over the flatware placement, her daughter’s past boyfriends’ bad teeth, and “the Jews.” Meanwhile, a seven-year-old wanders around in the basement and pokes his eyes out on dad’s spear collection. Director Miguel Nunez’s cast play the mayhem straight, resulting in a taut, farcical delight. The other five scripts in this 90-minute evening from Dramatis Personae are largely undisciplined, failing to establish consistent tones and tossing satiric barbs in scattershot fashion at obvious targets. Generally sluggish pacing further quashes the comedy. Through 12/19: Fri-Sat 10:30 PM, Strawdog Theatre Company, 3829 N. Broadway, 773-528-9696, strawdog.org, $15. —JH
