Christmas is a magical time of year and Davis Arts Council (DAC) is bringing the season to life with an extraordinary opportunity to jump into the pages of the classic book “The Polar Express.” The DAC’s Active Pages December event is a walk-through retelling of Chris Van Allsburg’s timeless story. The event takes place Dec. 3-5 at Layton Commons Park.

“It’s the story in its entirety,” said Kym Ridl, DAC Director of Communication. “We did A Christmas Carol last year and the Nutcracker two years ago.”

Active Pages used to just be in October, she said. “We focus on bringing classic literature to light. It was very well received, especially by Layton City and they asked us to expand it to Christmas in 2020.”

In October they created a spooky hollow by Layton Surf ‘n Swim, said Ridl. “For Christmas it’s under the lights. Visitors walk along the path and hear parts of the story at each station.”

The idea of Active Pages came from a former board member, Dawn Brandvold, Ridl said. “She saw it in Colorado and thought it would be fun to do here. She brought it to DAC. We’ve wanted to do it for a lot of years but it hadn’t gotten going until now.”

Parts are played by local actors, she said. “Some of our employees are active in the theater community and know some actors.”

It’s the straight narrative from the book, Ridl said. “It’s not public domain so we can’t make any changes. That’s fine –  it’s perfect. It’s like reading the book at home.”

The actors put magic behind the words, she said. “Kids’ eyes get really big as the actors are talking. It’s cute to see that. The actors dress up in hats or Victorian big puffy skirts. We tried to get them to wear pajamas but it’s too cold.”

Visitors will be in groups taken by a guide every five minutes, said Ridl. “We time it so that everyone keeps up – that's why the guide is essential.”

The city does the heavy lifting, she said. “They light the trees and have lights that look like animals on the grounds next to the path.”

It’s free but tickets are required for guaranteed entry. A ticket lottery ended on Tuesday but Ridl said there is a standby line. “We’ve always been able to accommodate the standby line.”

At the end of the journey, each family with tickets will get a copy of “The Polar Express,” Ridl said. “It’s one copy per group of up to six people. Those in the standby line will still receive a book.”

Ridl said in October they had 558 people sign up for tickets and they could accommodate 230. “This year 1,000 have signed up so to be more fair we decided to have a lottery where we choose the winners randomly.”

There’s only one book published so it will be the same as last time, she said. “We try to vary the books but some people might get repeat copies if they’ve come before (another year). It’s OK because there are probably others in the family who didn’t get one or they can share it with someone else.”

Funding for the program comes mainly from RAMP tax, said Ridl. “We've received some from the Eccles Foundation but our primary source is from RAMP.”

The Layton Heritage Museum will stay open late until 9 pm., she said. “Santa will be over there too.”

Ridl recommends visitors approach Wasatch from Gentile Street. “Traffic can be heavy on Fort Lane. Lines are long and you could get stuck in it and miss your ticket time.”

The standby line opens at 6 p.m. all three nights, she said. “Check in is at the table by Layton Surf ‘n Swim. You can come anytime between 6 and 8. It usually takes about 10-30 minutes to get in from standby. We can’t guarantee it but they should all get in.”

The Polar Express event runs Dec. 3-5 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. at Layton Commons Park, 437 N. Wasatch Drive.λ