Spoiler alert: If you happen to be a particularly engaged child catching up on the weekly news, or a particularly naïve adult caught up in the holiday spirit, please, for the love of all that is holly and/or jolly, do not read on. Don't say we didn't warn you.
At the height of the holidays, Whistler often resembles the inside of a snowglobe, fat, sparkly flakes falling on a winter wonderland. It's likely why so many visitors choose to spend their holidays in our whimsical little resort town. And what Christmas would be complete without a visit to jolly ole' Saint Nick? In a town that caters to tourists' each and every whim, it should come as no great surprise that there is a small cavalcade of Santa Clauses at the ready to spread some festive cheer.
Pique caught up with a handful of them to see how they approach their yuletide duties and what it takes to don the red and white suit.
The Rookie
Ira Pettle is no stranger to playing a whole host of characters through his work as a local theatre performer and kids' entertainer.
But he's relatively new to this whole Santa thing.
"Santa's a fairly simple character to play," he said. "He's just happy, so I tap into joy. That's really the character motivation."
Pettle, who just started several days of ho-ho-ho'ing at the Whistler Gingerbread House in Creekside, brings a decidedly un-commercial approach to his first public appearance as Kris Kringle.
"I'm trying to take a morally conscious approach to Santa Claus," he explained. He doesn't ask the kids what they want for Christmas; he doesn't even ask them if they've been good.
"It's all about family and taking care of your brothers and sisters, taking care of your parents," he continued. "Are you a good older brother? Are you a good younger sister? Those are the questions I'm asking the kids. If the answer's yes, which it always is, I ask why. What makes you so great? Why are you such a good older brother?"
Given his notoriety amongst Whistler's kid population, Pettle stands the risk of being outed moreso than his fellow Santas.
"Because I work with a lot of kids in town, some of the kids recognize DJ Ira underneath the suit. It's happened a couple times," he said. "It ends up becoming a fun little thing because I'm like, 'DJ Ira, who's that? He sounds like a really nice guy.'"
The Performer
Chris Quinlan joins fellow performer Pettle at the Whistler Gingerbread House this holiday season, and he credits his theatre background for helping him think on his booted feet.
"Improv is the best thing for it. It's all 'Yes, and," he said. "You just have to be prepared and know that little kids are going to come in, and the small ones are going to be terrified, so you need to be patient and create a softer version of Santa.
"It's always important to control the volume of your ho-ho-hos."
Quinlan, who cuts a tall, slim figure, said looking the part is an essential part of inhabiting Father Christmas.
"Your costume has to be fit properly," he said. "I don't like to give away all of my secrets, but there are certain accoutrements that can be added to your wardrobe that will enhance the Santa physique."
Because he's not up on the latest toy trends, Quinlan said he often looks to the parents for cues on their children's Christmas wishlist.
"When kids ask for whatever it is, half the time I don't know what it is. An LOL Doll? What the hell is that?" he said. "My question is always, 'Have you been kind and generous this year?' Then I look over at mommy, and if she nods, then I go, 'I think you have been, so there's probably a good chance you're going to get what you want.' I don't have to know what it is, I'm just trying to find a way to validate it."
The Veteran
Santa Kev, as he prefers to be called, has been rocking the red and white in Whistler going on 15 years now. If you can think of a gig with Kris Kringle's name on it, he's probably done it. Skate with Santa. The Mountain FM Christmas Breakfast. The Dec. 24 Santa Pub Crawl.
So if there's anyone in town that has this whole Santa thing dialled, it's him.
"You have to own it; you have to be Santa," he said of his approach. "There's this expectation of what Santa is and you should hold up to that at all costs. But you also gotta be able to think quick on your feet."
Like the one year Santa Kev, decked out in his regal, velour suit, ran into a precocious young girl with her family, well past the time she should have been in bed, waiting for Santa to slide down the chimney.
"Santa pulled the whole,' Hey, what are you doing up this late? How am I going to deliver presents if you're not sleeping?' And this little girl, I swear to God she's going to become a lawyer, she goes on to explain to Santa that it's OK she's still up because they're on vacation."
Later that night, Santa Kev and a helper were walking along the Village Stroll when, who do they happen to run into? You guessed it.
"I said, 'Hey, I thought I told you you needed to get home to bed!'" he recalled. "She goes, 'Santa, we're going, but it's so far. The hotel's way over there.' We were just laughing. 'Man, this girl is good.'"
So, about that Christmas Eve pub crawl: Is it just another way to spread some holiday cheer to Whistler's totally-of-age but still-young-at-heart?
"The Santa Crawl is about Santa letting off some steam after a long day of work," Santa Kev said with a laugh. "The crawl is hilarious because we're just out having fun, and everyone's like, 'Santa, Santa, what are you doing out drinking?' And I say, 'Hey, I'm almost finished. All I got left is Hawaii and Whistler, and I'm waiting for everyone to go to sleep.'"
