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The L.A. Weekly's Steve Mikulan survives the local production of the A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant without being thrown in the back of a white van and beaten with bamboo sticks until all of his thetans fell out. He does admit that things seemed a little dicey before the curtains went up:

The preshow chatter was a tad chilling at the Powerhouse Theater, where A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant is performing: Had the show’s creators, Kyle Jarrow and Alex Timbers, gone too far in spoofing the Church of Scientology? Would the infamously litigious cult sue the daylights out of everyone connected with the show? Uneasiness — a sense of looking over one’s shoulder — enveloped the house as the lights went down.

That evening's show proceeded without incident; Mikulan speculates that its creators were "perhaps a little wary about going after Scientology too eagerly." Of course, no one's seen either the musical's producers or child stars since they accepted an invitation to a "congratulatory brunch" at the Celebrity Centre. Someone should really check Tom Cruise's garbage this week for anything out of the ordinary. You know, someone that's not us. We think Scientology is one of the world's greatest religions!

[Photo: Kevin Merrill/LA Weekly]