They met on stage.
She was Elphaba, he was Fiyero.
That national touring production of “Wicked,” nearly 20 years ago, launched a romance between Stephanie J. Block and Sebastian Arcelus that is still going strong.
The power couple have shared the stage together several times over the years, including on Broadway. But now, as the musical that sparked their relationship is dominating box offices, the Broadway stars are celebrating a major career milestone together: performing with the Tabernacle Choir on Temple Square.
For the first time in the 25-year history of the choir’s beloved Christmas concert tradition, the featured guest artists are married to each other.
Block and Arcelus each had their own moments in the spotlight. Block performed a number of Christmas and Broadway classics, while Arcelus gave a stirring narration of the Apollo 8 mission that was defined, in part, by astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders reading the first 10 verses of the Bible (the creation story) to a global audience as they orbited the moon on Christmas Eve 1968.
But the couple also sometimes took the stage together, and they were visibly excited to share this moment as husband and wife. They expressed their gratitude several times throughout the night and even led the crowd of nearly 19,000 in a singalong — just the second audience singalong in the concert’s history (the first being with Sutton Foster in 2017).
“This was at the top of my Christmas wish list,” Arcelus said to his wife at one point after sharing a long hug, going on to call the Tabernacle Choir “one of the most famous choirs in all the world.”
In another twist from years past, the Christmas concert featured an additional pair of guest artists — violinist Leandro Curaba and bandoneon player Julian Mansilla, who both performed with the choir earlier this year in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
It all created a unique dynamic and made for a memorable opening night in Salt Lake City.
Here are a few highlights from this year’s concert, which runs at the Conference Center through Dec. 13 and will air on PBS and BYUtv next year.
Broadway power couple calls Tabernacle Choir debut ‘an ultimate thrill’
As a mezzo-soprano, Block’s vocal range is a little lower than recent female Broadway artists who have starred in this production. She won a Tony Award in 2019 for her role as Cher in “The Cher Show,” and that deeper, raspier tone shone through in her performance Thursday night.
Wearing a sparkly blue gown, Block took the stage singing “Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella” and then expressed gratitude for the opportunity to perform with the choir. She turned around and looked at the choir and orchestra members, thanking them for their talents.
“It is an ultimate thrill to make music with you. It truly is,” she said.
Before performing “What Child Is This?” Block shared how her love of Christmas has amplified since becoming a mom.
“Now my husband and I are experiencing Christmas all over again, through the eyes of our beautiful daughter, and it’s pretty extraordinary,” she said. “The fact is, that at the heart of Christmas, there is the story of a mother and her baby. And the spirit of Christmas and newness — that hope, that peace, that joy — it all can be found right there in a manger, in the babe, the son of Mary.”
Block didn’t just stick to Christmas music throughout the night. Her love of the season is so expansive, she said, that she can find the Christmas spirit in just about any song — including “My Favorite Things” from “The Sound of Music,” which reminds her to celebrate the good in her life.
Much of that good stems from her family — her husband, Arcelus, and her 10-year-old daughter Vivienne. Block and Arcelus seemed to have an especially good time in the moments they shared the stage — including for an interactive singalong of “Jingle Bells,” ”I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” and “Silent Night.”
“How lucky are we to be doing this right here, right now?” Block said with her husband by her side.
An organ solo — Christmas-meets-’2001: A Space Odyssey’ style
No Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert would be complete without a dynamic organ solo from Tabernacle organist Richard Elliott — and this year’s didn’t disappoint.
Fog engulfed Elliott as he began to play “Far, Far Away on Judea’s Plains,” accompanied by a timpani and bass drum. While the Christmas carol has been around since the 1800s, Elliott came up with a truly one-of-a-kind arrangement separating it from all other versions: Interspersed throughout the Christmas number was the dramatic theme from “2001: A Space Odyssey.”
The unexpected pairing, it turns out, was foreshadowing a heartfelt narration from Arcelus.
An unexpected message from space
Six weeks before astronauts Borman, Lovell and Anders became the first humans to leave Earth’s orbit, NASA suggested the historic mission be broadcast. As shared in a clip during Arcelus’ narration of the Apollo 8 mission, Borman wasn’t particularly fond of that idea.
“Fortunately, the people at NASA overruled me, because the American people and the people on the Earth had every right to see what we were seeing,” said Borman, who died in 2023 at the age of 95.
The crew was uneasy as they tried to settle on a message they could share that Christmas Eve in 1968, at the end of a year that saw war raging across Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe. After some discussion and deliberation, they landed on “a message no one expected,” Arcelus said.
The moving narration from Arcelus, who is well known for his longtime role as Jay Whitman in the political drama “Madam Secretary,” had an additional layer of emotion as it included the actual audio recordings of the astronauts taking turns reading the creation story as told in the Book of Genesis — all while they orbited the Earth.
“As it would be for astronauts in the future, this view of Earth, this overview of creation, had a powerful effect on their minds and hearts,” Arcelus said. “From this perspective, there are no borders, no boundaries. The diversity of geographies and climates comes together in perfect harmony.
“The Bible verses they read that Christmas Eve captured all of this and more,” he continued. “With this perspective, the possibility of peace becomes so clear, so real, and many astronauts return home, yearning for it, believing in it, and working to achieve it.”
For all the Apollo 8 mission accomplished, Arcelus said, for many, it was largely defined by that 10-verse passage from the Bible — a message that also draws to mind the shepherds who got a glimpse of the heavens when an angel came and declared the birth of Jesus Christ.
“With gratitude for the transcendent beauty of this world and of all creation, may we invite him into our hearts that he may bring peace on Earth and goodwill to all us, everywhere, this Christmas,” Arcelus said.
Some Latin flair
Arcelus, whose father is from Uruguay, also put the spotlight on his Latin heritage.
He noted that the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square have recently performed in Mexico, Peru and Argentina, and that concerts have also been livestreamed to 11 South American countries, including Uruguay.
The actor then shared one of his favorite Spanish carols, “Vamos, ya Pastores” (“Let’s Go Now, Shepherds”), with the audience. The piece, he said, comes from a medieval Nativity play brought to the Americas from Spain in the 16th century.
Another pair of special guest artists, Mansilla and Curaba, added more flair to the number with the violin and bandoneon, an instrument that is particularly popular in tango music. The musicians also lent their virtuosity to two other Latin pieces, “El Nacimiento” (”The Birth”) and “Adios, Nonino” (“Farewell, Grandfather”), and it proved to be a standout moment of the night.
A massive undertaking
Although the Christmas concert is a well-oiled machine, it’s still a massive undertaking each year. Several numbers throughout the night served as a visual reminder of everything that goes into this all-volunteer production.
The Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra and Bells at Temple Square, along with the Gabriel’s Trumpets ensemble and dancers, started off the evening with lively renditions of “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee (Ode to Joy),” “Joy to the World” and “’Tis Joy When Moon and Stars Above” — all arranged by the choir’s music director, Mack Wilberg.
Instrumental numbers like “For Unto Us a Child is Born” from Handel’s “Messiah” and “Go Tell It on the Mountain” gave all of these musicians a chance to shine and showcase their hard work, and a highlight from the choir was a touching rendition of the Welsh carol “All Through the Night.”
While the Christmas concerts take place over only three days of the year, it’s clear from all of the little details — like pairing “2001: A Space Odyssey” with ”Far, Far Away on Judea’s Plains” — that painstaking preparation goes into this celebration of the Savior that has become a beloved tradition.
