Black Box Radio presents ‘The Bishop’s Wife’

Cristina Arriola was going to present “A Bishop’s Wife” if it was the last thing she did. OK, maybe not last thing. But one of the last things — at least during this festive season. And why not a radio play by her Mira Black Box Players about an angel in human form who enters the life of a bishop in order to help him build a new cathedral and repair his damaged marriage?

“We could have done ‘The Rabbi’s Wife,’” mused Arriola. “But we’re sticking with the bishop.”

So, for what she believes is the 22nd production for the radio play group, “The Bishop’s Wife” is it, performed Dec. 7-8 at 7:30 p.m and Dec. 9 at 2 p.m. at the Bay Terrace Theatre.

“For the end of the year (play), I try for a holiday theme with no implications of any kind of a moral or overbearing theme,” Arriola said by phone earlier this week.

Arriola conducted her usual online search for the right selection and “many of these radio plays are public domain and they’re available,” she said.

Unfortunately, noted Arriola, “the holiday Christmas plays — or call them what you will — are very, very sparse.”

Arriola had already presented “The Miracle of 34th Street” and “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

“I had to do a lot of searching,” she said.

Since the Black Box Players had last December off because of a scheduling conflict with the venue, “I was determined to get this one in,” Arriola said. “This was like the end of the line as far as Christmas plays in the line of old-time radio scripts.”

Arriola is satisfied snagging “The Bishop’s Wife” — a production that’s “upbeat with comedy.”

There are three key characters — the bishop, his wife and the angel — and “the supporting characters are really wellbalanced,” Arriola said.

There are “various female characters,” including a selfish millionaire who is willing to part with cash to build the cathedral but there are strings attached, Arriola said, with “the bishop having to kowtow to her though he can’t stand her.”

The good thing about radio players is the lack of needed rehearsal time, Arriola said, requiring one week day a couple of hours and a weekend day a couple of hours.

“We’ve got one week of rehearsal and then it’s showtime,” Arriola said.

Reading the script is infinitely easier than having to memorize it, she said.

“You’ve got to know what a comma, period and a ‘dot, dot, dot’ are,” Arriola said. “And don’t read the stuff that’s in parentheses. If you can read, you can be a radio star.”

Performing in radio plays “gives people an opportunity” to get on stage, Arriola said.

“It fills a void for those too old to memorize” a script, “like me,” she said.

Also, the director/producer noted, “Everyone gets to participate in the process. ‘What would you like to see in this place.’ It’s a very flexible medium. All the actors have a chance to voice their opinion.”

The cast, continued Arriola, “is a good, loyal bunch of people that just loves doing these.”

Arriola keeps busy during the production handling sound effects doing either the more old-school effects or on her iPad “for things I can’t do live ... like tires screeching.”

The production includes a real-life vocalist with piano accompaniment, said Arriola, perpetuating audience singalongs. And for an added treat, people are served angel food cake.

“It’ll be a cheery time, absolutely,” Arriola said.

The Mira Black Box Players presents “The Bishop’s Wife,” on Friday, Dec. 7, and Sat., Dec. 8, 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 9, 2 p.m., at the Bay Terrace Theatre, 51 Daniels Ave., Vallejo.