‘Yule for Fuel’ Brings Warmth To The Holiday Season

WELLFLEET – As the coldest months of the year approach, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater aims to provide warmth to audiences and community members alike with the annual holiday celebration “Yule for Fuel,” benefiting Lower Cape Outreach’s fuel assistance program. W.H.A.T. invites guests to “celebrate the season in story and song” at the festive fundraiser. 

The program supports individuals struggling to heat their homes in the winter months. In 2008, that need brought the idea of Yuel for Fuel to the mind of Stephen Russell, who began the tradition. 

Russell will host this year's celebration alongside Dick Morrell as they lead audiences through a diverse collection of performances throughout the evening. 

As W.H.A.T. Creative Director Christopher Ostrom describes it, “Yule for Fuel is a holiday variety show. It features a variety of musicians, solo artists, writers, and performers. It’s a little bit of everything.” 

 The performance, expected to run about three hours, will include a variety of talent. Blu Central, a local musical ensemble, will entertain with its diverse musical stylings, and Long Time Travelling will share its acoustic sound with listeners. Gregory and Rachel Hischak, Kathleen Heeley and Heyday, Cheryl Parkington and Mike Murzyn, The Kingfish, Tom Leidenfrost, and Chandler Travis and Friends will also entertain with their unique musical performances. 

 Kevin Rice will read poetry by the late Brent Harold, authors Candy Hammond and Dennis Minsky will share their literary stylings, and performer and writer Christine Rathbun, a.k.a. “Fat Ass Cancer Bitch,” will offer what is sure to be an engaging performance. 

 Following the performances, the audience will be incorporated more directly into the celebration as guests and performers mingle in what Ostrom describes as “a huge holiday encore,” singing and celebrating together. 

While this celebration is guaranteed to be a rip-roaring good time, don’t forget the giving aspect. The price of each ticket goes to help a local household in need. “It’s a cause that has been near and dear to our hearts for almost 17 years now,” said Ostrom. “It’s a festive night, but it’s also a very meaningful night.

“We’re all in this together, especially on the Outer Cape, and with the housing crisis we’re experiencing and the challenges faced in a seasonal economy, we are all aware of our neighbors’ struggles, and we want to do more to create a resilient community and support the people who call this place their home year-round,” Ostrom said. 

 The amalgamation of performances at the event is a fun way to put into practice the spirit of generosity and empathy so characteristic of this time of year. 

 Yule for Fuel happens Dec. 13 beginning at 7 p.m. at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater. To purchase tickets, visit what.org.