Spotlight Players has just one request for viewers of its latest theatrical production: Don’t be afraid to laugh out loud.

“This play is a test to see what your laugh sounds like,” said Paul Hill, a Spotlight Players member and an actor who has two roles in the play, “Dashing through the Snow.”

Spotlight Players, a community theater group under Valley Arts United, is making history because it’s the first time the play has been produced in the Pacific Northwest.

On Nov. 18 — the opening day of the show — producer KarlaRae Ellis received an unexpected phone call from one of the play’s writers, Jesse Jones, who wished Spotlight Players good luck.

Ellis said it was a special treat to receive a phone call from Jones.

“Dashing through the Snow” features four vignettes that tell stories of everyday life in Tinsel, Texas, where it’s Christmas 365 days a year. The play is set at the Snowflake Inn, a bed and breakfast owned by Trina Walcott (performed by Ellis), who gets her share of fruity guests on the four days that precede Christmas. Each scene is a particular day.

The production is described as a “lighthearted family-friendly Christmas comedy.”

“It’s family-friendly, with just a dash of Texas hot sauce,” Ellis said.

Director Bob Yount, who has been a part of Spotlight for three years and has directed four productions in the past two years, said the characters in the play really spoke to him.

“I was born and raised in a small town in Oklahoma,” he said. “My background as an actor is improvisational. I like plays that enable actors to expand beyond the script and emotionally and, sometimes, physically interact with audience members. This play allows that.”

And it’s funny as heck, Yount said.

“I’m drawn to plays that play well to an audience, that are funny, but have an underside of poignancy,” he said. “(This play) is about family and about family at Christmastime, and the love and bonds that hold a family and a community together.”

Yount said he’s been blessed with amazing actors who have been cast in the play.

“Right now, we have about 20 to 25 actors that rotate in and out of our group,” he said. “We add additional people that see us and want to be part of our group.”

Yount said everyone who comes in from audition notices are welcomed into a supporting atmosphere.

‘Dashing through the snow’

The final two showings of “Dashing through the Snow” will be Thursday and Friday inside the amphitheater at Pierce County Meridian Habitat Park on South Hill, 14422 Meridian St. East. Doors will open at 7 p.m., and the show will begin at 7:30. Tickets may be purchased in advance at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/205376, or at the box office on the night of the show. Those who are interested in joining Spotlight Players may call KarlaRae Ellis at 253-307-9415 or email slp@valleyartsunited.org.

Reach Puyallup reporter Andrew Fickes at 253-841-2481 Ext. 313 or email at andrew.fickes@puyallupherald.com.