Peace on Earth: Winter Garden Heritage Foundation, Opera Orlando partner for 'All is Calm' performance

For the first time since the Garden Theatre closed in October 2024, the curtains will rise on a live production this holiday season.

And although that feat isn’t a miracle, the story that will grace the stage certainly is.

In a perfect pairing, the Winter Garden Heritage Foundation and Opera Orlando will present two performances of “All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914” Dec. 20 and 21 at the historic theater. 

“All is Calm” tells the true story of the 1914 Christmas Truce of World War I. 

According to research published by the Imperial War Museum London, the truce took place between British and German soldiers entrenched in the area near Ypres, Belgium, on the Western Front of World War I.

According to the IWM, German Army officer Walther Stennes recalled firing ceased on both fronts at noon Christmas Eve. 

British private Marmaduke Walkinton said the two sides were only 300 yards apart — close enough to hear each other.

“We were in the front line; we were about 300 yards from the Germans,” he said, according to IWM reports. “And we had, I think on Christmas Eve, we’d been singing carols ... and the Germans had been doing the same. And we’d been shouting to each other. ... Eventually a German said, ‘Tomorrow you no shoot, we no shoot.’ And the morning came, and we didn’t shoot, and they didn’t shoot.”

On Christmas Day, the two sides met in no man’s land. They shook hands, exchanged gifts and even enjoyed a game of soccer. 

This true miracle inspired “Silent Night: Opera in Two Acts,” which premiered in 2011 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The opera went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in Music in 2012.

Gabriel Preisser, general director of Opera Orlando and a West Orange High School alum, portrayed Lt. Gordon in that premiere cast.

He is thrilled to bring “All is Calm” — a condensed, a capella show based on the 1914 truce — to the Garden Theatre.

“I was devastated when the theater closed,” he says. “I always wanted to use the theater, and after we saw what happened, we got connected with (Winter Garden Heritage Foundation Executive Director) Kristi Karst Gomen. We give her a lot of kudos — she helped make this dream come true.” 

Opera Orlando General Director and CEO Grant Preisser says “All is Calm” is always a crowd favorite.

“Every time we tell this story, there are people bawling their eyes out,” he says. “Every single word is an archived word from a soldier.

“Peace is a universal message,” he says. “That Christmas, they just showed their humanity. Once they knew someone as more than their enemy, they no longer saw them as that.”

Following both performances, the opera will host a talk-back, which allows audience members to voice their reactions. Often, veterans will share their own stories of war during that time.

Gabriel Preisser and Gomen both hope “All is Calm” is the first collaboration in a long partnership.

“We are really excited,” Gomen says. “It’s (‘All is Calm’) a story that proves there can be peace on Earth, and we are grateful to the (city of Winter Garden) in helping us bring this to our community.”

“All is Calm” is serving as one of the foundation’s main fundraisers this year, and sponsorship opportunities still are available. Gomen says she also hopes to find sponsors to purchase tickets to allow veterans to attend for free. If interested, email Gomen at [email protected].

Tickets for “All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914” are available for purchase here.

About the Winter Garden Heritage Foundation
The Winter Garden Heritage Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the rich history and cultural heritage of West Orange County. Through various programs and events, we engage the community in preserving our shared history and fostering an appreciation for our unique past. 

For more information about the event or the Winter Garden Heritage Foundation, click here.