It’s summertime in Australia, which could explain why the country’s celebrated Ten Tenors is in America this month, spreading holiday cheer with their stunning 10-part harmonies.
The ensemble brings its “Our Christmas Wish” tour to Fox Tucson Theatre for two shows — 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27, and 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 28. It’s the second year in a row that the group has included Arizona in a U.S. holiday trek that includes several stops in California and along the East Coast.
The group is touring on its latest Christmas album “Our Christmas Wish.” Proceeds from sales will benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
We caught up with member Jared Newall on Monday for an email interview about the show.
Welcome back to Tucson. You brought your “Home for the Holidays” tour to Tucson last December and now we get you for “Our Christmas Wish” tour. So what is your Christmas Wish?
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“This year, our Christmas wish has come true. We wanted to do something with our latest Christmas album that would better the world, and this year we’ve been able to partner with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. With the sales of ‘Our Christmas Wish’ at our shows and on Amazon, we’re able to give all the profits to St. Jude, so they can continue to help kids struggling with illnesses.”
So why did you select St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as the U.S. Recipient of your 2016 Christmas album?
“In 2015, we partnered with an Australian children’s charity called the Children’s Hospital Foundation. We heard stories of families affected by childhood diseases and childhood cancer, and we were unbelievably moved. Through the Australian sales of our album, we raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the (foundation). We wanted to find somewhere in the U.S. that was treating and researching childhood illness, and we found one of the most incredible facilities and organizations the world has ever known. We believe that childhood illness touches everyone, and we are glad that we can play our part in helping those affected this Christmas.”
You’re spending Christmas in the U.S. How different will that be from spending the holidays in your native Australia, where it’s summertime?
“We all grew up watching American Christmas movies, seeing visions of real Christmas trees and snow blanketing the ground. All the while, we’re sweating in temperatures north of 100 degrees. This year we’ll be performing on Christmas Day in Aspen, Colorado, so we’ll celebrate our ‘tour Christmas’ on the 26th, and then we’ll all celebrate again when we get back to Australia just before New Year’s.”
And I see from your schedule that with the exception of the month of January, you guys are booked pretty steadily in the U.S. through March. Are you on some sort of American residency? How will you spend the month off?
“As the saying goes, ‘there’s no rest for the wicked.’ We’ll have a couple of weeks off, and then we go into rehearsals for a show we’re performing to celebrate our national holiday, Australia Day. I expect a few of us will be defrosting in the sun as much as possible, before we head back here with our newest show, ‘The Power of Ten.’ ”
In your previous Tucson shows — including a nine-show run in 2009 — did you guys find any great haunts, restaurants, bars, etc., that you have on your must-visit list this time around?
“Both times I’ve visited Tucson, I’ve kept it pretty low-key, to be honest. But I have vivid memories of the Fox Theatre and all the brightly colored painted walls. We all loved bringing our Broadway show to the Fox Theatre in 2014, but for me, our Christmas show is the best thing the group has ever done, and we’re really excited to be bringing it to town this year.”
When you visited Santa this year, what was on the top of your wish list?
“I’m a bit of a gadget nerd, so the list is long. I think at the top would be a new drone. We visit so many interesting places, so it would be nice to have an aerial record. I think Tucson would look nice from the air!”
At your shows here, what can we expect? What classic Christmas carols or holiday singalongs will be on the program?
“There is a fantastic blend of classic Christmas tunes in our show, but one of my favorites would have to be a Ten Tenors original called ‘A Thousand Candles.’ It’s so nice to have a group original that everybody seems to know and sing along to. We’re so excited to be wrapping this year’s touring in Tucson, and to have somewhere to defrost before we head back to Australia. We can’t wait!”
