Hackensack Celebrates The Christmas Caper Creators, Legacy

On a crisp Tuesday evening, just days before Christmas, the Hackensack City Council meeting felt less like a formal session and more like a warm family reunion. On December 16, Mayor Caseen Gaines and the City Council gathered to honor the lifelong friendship and creative magic of Nicholas “Mr. Pic” Picciallo and MaryAnn DiMaria, and their collaboration in creating The Christmas Caper, a local holiday classic.

Their partnership, which began in Hackensack in 1978, blended world-class pedigree with a hometown heart.

Mr. Pic, an Air Force veteran and a graduate of London’s prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and William Paterson University, was a beloved English teacher and City resident who famously revived the high school’s theater program. MaryAnn, who began her lifelong love of music at age nine, brought the sophistication of the Manhattan School of Music and a degree from the University of Texas to her work as a composer and educator across Bergen and Passaic Counties.

Together, they wrote and staged productions that were often celebrated as being “Better than Broadway.” Since 1982, their original musical The Christmas Caper has been a Hackensack holiday staple. Whether directing West Side Story, Grease, or Annie, they turned local stages into places of belonging for generations of students.

The night reached an emotional peak when Mayor Gaines—one of their many proud alumni—presented a proclamation to MaryAnn. In a true full-circle moment, a group of former students and cast members joined the Mayor to sing “Christmas is Love,” a selection from the very show that has defined Hackensack’s holidays for 43 years.

“Hackensack is eternally grateful for the joy they have brought to our City,” Mayor Gaines said. “The harmony they built in our community remains a permanent gift that has lasted for decades, and their legacy will live on for decades to come.”