“What a spectacular drawing room you have here,” Hugh Bonneville exclaimed as he took the stage of the LDS Conference Center on Thursday night. The British actor, best-known for his portrayal of an early 20th-century earl on the popular period drama “Downton Abbey,” was a guest of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square on their annual Christmas extravaganza. He shared the bill with two-time Tony winner Sutton Foster, whose radiant personality was easily big enough to fill the hangar-size hall.
Foster charmed the crowd with warm renditions of seasonal songs such as Vince Guaraldi’s “Christmas Time Is Here” (from “A Charlie Brown Christmas”) and a high-energy medley that included “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” as well as surprisingly touching performances of “Pure Imagination” (from “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”) and John Denver’s “Sunshine on My Shoulders,” the latter dedicated to her late mother.