A Christmas Carol
Production logo from Ahrens and Flaherty's website
MusicAlan Menken
LyricsLynn Ahrens
BookMike Ockrent
Lynn Ahrens
BasisCharles Dickens' novella A Christmas Carol
Productions1994-2003 Madison Square Garden
2004 Film
2016 London concert

A Christmas Carol is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens. The musical is based on Charles Dickens' 1843 novella of the same name. The show was presented annually at New York City's Theater at Madison Square Garden from December 1, 1994, to December 27, 2003.[1][2]

Productions

Madison Square Garden, New York (1994–2003)

A Christmas Carol premiered on December 1, 1994. It was performed annually in December at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in Madison Square Garden from December 1994 until December 2003.[1][2][3]

The original 1994 production was directed by Mike Ockrent with choreography by Susan Stroman, sets by Tony Walton, costumes by William Ivey Long, lighting by Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer, sound by Tony Meola, projections by Wendall K. Harrington, and musical direction by Paul Gemignani. Walter Charles played Ebenezer Scrooge.[2]

Terrence Mann, Tony Randall, Hal Linden, Roddy McDowall (in his final role), F. Murray Abraham,[4] Frank Langella, Tim Curry, Tony Roberts, Roger Daltrey and Jim Dale have all played the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in subsequent productions of A Christmas Carol.[5]

2004 television film

In 2004, the production was adapted for television and produced by Hallmark Entertainment for NBC. It was directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman and features Kelsey Grammer as Ebenezer Scrooge, Jason Alexander as Jacob Marley, Jane Krakowski as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Jesse L. Martin as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Geraldine Chaplin as the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Be, and Jennifer Love Hewitt as Emily (named Belle in the book), Scrooge's former fiancée.

London concerts (2016–2020)

The musical made its London premiere on Monday December 19, 2016 at the Lyceum Theatre as a concert production played by London Musical Theatre Orchestra and produced by James Yeoburn and Stuart Matthew Price for United Theatrical. It starred Robert Lindsay as Ebenezer Scrooge, Alex Gaumond as Bob Cratchit, Carrie Hope Fletcher and her sister-in-law Giovanna Fletcher as Emily and Mrs Cratchit, Madalena Alberto as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Hugh Maynard as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Norman Bowman as Jacob Marley, Peter Polycarpou as Mr Fezziwig, and John Addison as Fred Anderson.

The concert production was again at the Lyceum on December 11 and 18, 2017, with Lindsay returning to the role of Scrooge.[6]

On 17 December 2018, the production returned to the Lyceum Theatre again with Griff Rhys Jones as Scrooge.

From 7 December 2020 a new production of the staged concert with the London Musical Theatre Orchestra opened at the Dominion Theatre during the COVID-19 pandemic where the theatre was socially distanced, starring Brian Conley as Scrooge, Matt Willis as Bob Cratchit, Jacqueline Jossa as Emily/Ghost of Christmas Future, Lucie Jones as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Sandra Marvin as Mrs Fezziwigg, Martyn Ellis as Mr Fezziwigg, Cedric Neal as Ghost of Christmas Present, Jeremy Secomb as Jacob Marley, Rebecca Lock as Mrs Cratchit and Sam Oladeinde as Fred Anderson/Young Scrooge.[7] The run was due to close on 2 January 2021, however due to the Government's tier 3 restrictions in London, the run finished early on 15 December 2020.[8]

Yearly MSG Casts

Character 1994
Original Cast
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Final Cast
Ebenezer Scrooge Walter Charles Terrence Mann Tony Randall Hal Linden
Roddy McDowall
Roger Daltrey Tony Roberts Frank Langella Tim Curry F. Murray Abraham Jim Dale
Bob Cratchit Nick Corley Todd Gross Nick Corley
Ghost of Christmas Past/
Lamplighter
Ken Jennings Joel Blum Ken Jennings Didi Conn Ken Jennings Martin Moran Justin Brill
Ghost of Christmas Present/
Sandwichboard Man
Michael Mandell Ben Vereen Ken Page Roz Ryan Reginald VelJohnson D'Ambrose Boyd Reginald VelJohnson Gerry McIntyre
Ghost of Christmas
Yet-To-Be
Theara J. Ward Valentina Kozlova Christine Dunham Catherine Batcheller
Ghost of Jacob Marley Jeff Keller Paul Kandel
Tiny Tim Matthew Mezzacapa Chris Marquette
Zach London
Matthew Ballinger
Pierce Cravens
Christopher Cordell
Patrick J.P. Duffey
Anthony Blair Hall
Christian Valiando
Dennis Michael Hall
Patrick Stogner
Jimmy Walsh
Patrick Stogner
Jimmy Walsh
Shadoe Brandt
Anthony Colangelo
Sky Jarrett
Anthony Colangelo
Graham Phillips
Fred Anderson Robert Westenberg Steve Blanchard Greg Zerkle Paul Jackel John Sloman James Judy Robert Westenberg John Sloman James Judy
Blind Hag/
Scrooge's Mother
Andrea Frierson Toney Nicole Arrington (Hag)
Barbara Marineau (Mother)
Joan Barber Debra Cardona Joan Barber
Mrs. Mops Darcy Pulliam Karen Murphy Corinne Melancon Marilyn Pasekoff Karen Murphy
Scrooge at 18 Michael Christopher Moore Tom Stuart Michael Moore Tom Stuart Joe Cassidy Denton Tarver Daniel Cochran
Emily Emily Skinner Kate Dawson Kristin Huxhold Kate Dawson Kristin Huxhold
Mr. Fezziwig Gerry Vichi Michael Cone Ray Friedeck Daniel Marcus Michael J. Farina Roland Rusinek
Mrs. Fezziwig Mary Stout Joy Hermalyn Debra Cardona Kelly Ellenwood
Young Marley/
Undertaker/
Punch and Judy Man
Christopher Sieber Ken Barnett Ashton Byrum
Mr. Smythe Joseph Kolinski James Judy Chris Vasquez Erick Pinnick Joseph Kolinski Chris Vasquez
Grace Smythe Lindsay Jobe Cara Horner
Joanna Howard
Cara Horner
Jennifer Blain
Olivia Oguma
Tavia Rivee Jefferson
Netousha Harris
Tavia Rivee Jefferson
Brittany Alexander Campbell
Marissa Gould
Amelia Harris
Catherine Marie Downey
Allison Fischer
Catherine Marie Downey
Carly Seyler
Vachelle Gil
Mrs. Cratchit Joy Hermalyn Robin Baxter Rachel Black Whitney Webster
Old Joe/
Mr. Hawkins
Kenneth McMullen Don Mayo Kenneth McMullen
Sally Anderson Natalie Toro Stephanie Bast Whitney Webster La Tanya Hall
Jonathon Jason Fuchs Evan J. Newman
Jason Fuchs
Adam Barruch
Christopher Marquette
Adam Barruch
Kennedy Kanagawa
Marshall Pailet
Matt Bowles
Gerard Canonico
Scott Owen Cumberbatch
Gerard Canonico
Paul Tiesler
Jimmy Walsh
Justin Thomas Riordan
Andrew Zutty
Jimmy Walsh
Scrooge at 8/
Ignorance
David Gallagher (plays Cratchit Child instead of Ignorance) Matthew Ballinger
Zachary Petkanas
Evan Silverberg
Zachary Petkanas
Anthony Blair Hall
Joseph Louis Santos III
Dennis Michael Hall
Stephen Scarpulla
Jimmy Walsh
Johnny Cennicola
Justin Riordan
Nicholas Jonas
Anthony Colangelo
Evan Daves
Jonathan Demar
Kevin Carillo
Kevin Carillo
Zachary Goldstein
Scrooge at 12 Ramzi Khalaf Christopher Mark Petrizzo
Paul Franklin Dano
Christopher Mark Petrizzo
Matthew Hoffman
Evan Silverberg
Paul Franklin Dano
Gabriel Millman
Jesse McCartney
Andrew Keenan-Bolger
Kennedy Kanagawa
Johnny Cenicola
Patrick Dunn
Johnny Cenicola
Michael A. Mags
Jared Goldstein
Michael A. Mags
Fan (originally Fan at 10) Jacy De Filippo
Olivia Oguma
Eliza Atkins Clark
Nathalie Paulding
Eliza Atkins Clark
Elizabeth Lundberg
Elizabeth Lundberg
Jenell Slack
Dana Chechile
Carissa Farina
Chloe Zeitounian
Lexine Bondoc
Tristin Mays
Lily Havala Wen
Lindsey Pickering
Jewel Restaneo
Lily Havala Wen
Jewel Restaneo
Madeleine Martin
Alexandra Sullivan
Kristin Klabunde
Judge/Poulterer/
Charity Man
Michael H. Ingram (Judge)
Walter Willison (Poulterer/Charity Man)
Michael H. Ingram Roland Rusinek Wayne W. Pretlow Duane Martin Foster
Scrooge's Father/
Undertaker/
Charity Man
Michael X. Martin
(Father/Undertaker)
Martin Van Treuren
(Charity Man)
Michael X. Martin
(Father/Undertaker)
Wayne Pretlow
(Charity Man)
Michael X. Martin
(Father/Undertaker)
Seth Malkin
(Charity Man)
Wayne Schroder
(Father/Undertaker)
Wayne Pretlow
(Charity Man)
Wayne Schroder
Charity Man Robert Ousley Keith Byron Kirk Erik Stein David Aron Damane Don Mayo Erik Stein David Lowenstein Erik Stein
Fan at 6/
Cratchit Child
Mary Elizabeth Albano Olivia Oguma
Diana Mary Rice
Gemini Quintos
Diana Mary Rice
Gemini Quintos
Zoe Petkanas
combined with Fan at 10
Cratchit Child Betsy Chang (Martha Cratchit) & Sean Thomas Morrissey Anthony Roth Costanzo
Bobby Steggert
Girl does not appear, Boy added to Scrooge at 12 track
Jack Smythe/
Ignorance
Andy Jobe Jack Smythe does not appear, Ignorance added to Scrooge at 8 track
Match Girl Arlene Pierret does not appear
Punch and Judy Woman Donna Lee Marshall does not appear
Gravedigger Bill Nolte does not appear
Street Urchin/
Child/Swing
Christopher Mark Petrizzo
Justin Bartholemew Kamen
Matthew F. Byrne
P.J. Smith
does not appear

Long Runs: Gail Pennington appeared all 10 years in the Ensemble
Paul Kandel appeared as the Ghost of Jacob Marley for 9 consecutive years, the longest any cast member appeared in one speaking role

Synopsis

The opening numbers are "The Years Are Passing By" and "Jolly, Rich, and Fat". In later productions the two numbers are combined as "Jolly Good Time." Scrooge first encounters the three ghosts of Christmas in their real-world guises as a lamplighter (Past), a charity show barker (Present), and a blind beggar woman (Future) ("Nothing to Do With Me"). Scrooge's long-suffering employee Bob Cratchit, and Bob's son Tiny Tim, purchase a Christmas chicken ("You Mean More to Me").

The visit of the ghost of Jacob Marley ("Link By Link"), features a half-dozen singing, dancing spirits presented with various levels of makeup and special effects. One of these ghosts in this version is known to be an old colleague of Scrooge and Marley's, Mr. Haynes, who was said to be "mean to the bone", resulting in his charred skeleton. Other puns include a spirit with a safe embedded in his chest, who "never had a heart".

The Ghost of Christmas Past reinforces the character's signature theme of illuminating Scrooge's worldview ("The Lights of Long Ago"). One notable departure from Dickens' novella in this portion of the film is its depiction of Ebenezer Scrooge's father, identified as John William Scrooge, being sentenced to debtors' prison while his horrified family looks on; this scene was inspired by an actual occurrence from Dickens' own childhood.

The Ghost of Christmas Present ("Abundance and Charity" and "Christmas Together"), makes his point that Christmas is a time for celebration, generosity, and fellowship. The former takes place at a fantastical version of the charity show he was seen promoting on Christmas Eve, and the latter whisks Scrooge on a tour of London that includes the homes of his nephew Fred, his clerk Bob Cratchit, and Mr. Smythe, a recently widowed client of Scrooge's lending house.

The entire Christmas Future ("Dancing On Your Grave", "You Mean More to Me (Reprise)", and "Yesterday, Tomorrow, and Today"), culminates in Scrooge's awakening in his bedroom on Christmas morning.

"What a Day, What a Sky" bookends "Nothing to Do With Me", dramatizing Scrooge's new outlook as he races through the streets of London making amends. The show concludes with a reprise of "Christmas Together" featuring the entire cast.

Scenes and musical numbers

1994 version

Final version

Instrumentation

The orchestration for A Christmas Carol consists of five woodwinds, one French horn, three trumpets in B-Flat (one doubling on flugelhorn), two trombones (the second doubling tuba), a drum kit, a percussion section, two synthesizers, one harp (doubling synthesizer) and strings. The first woodwind player doubles on flute, piccolo, clarinet in B-flat and soprano saxophone, the second on oboe, English horn, clarinet in B-flat and tenor saxophone, the third on clarinets in E-flat and B-flat, flute, piccolo, tin whistle and alto saxophone, the fourth bass clarinet in B-flat, flute and clarinet in B-flat, and the fifth on bassoon, clarinet in B-flat, flute and bass saxophone.

Reception

David Richards reviewed the 1994 production for The New York Times writing:

"Christmas Together," the joyful production number that comes two thirds of the way through, offers nothing less than a panoramic view of the city in full celebration. Stage left, you have Tiny Tim and the Cratchits; stage right, Scrooge's nephew Fred and his family. Meanwhile, the sorts of windows you find in Advent calendars are being thrown open everywhere. Behind some, actors are singing; behind others, cardboard cutouts are dancing. At "The Phantom of the Opera" or "Miss Saigon," you tend to look up a lot. At "A Christmas Carol," you look around.

Of the score, Richards wrote: "After the spectacle, the score by Mr. Menken (with lyrics by Ms. Ahrens) is the production's major drawing card." Richards continued, "The eye is courted at every turn, the special effects come on a regular basis and the street scenes don't lack for warmly dressed bodies and the odd beggar. At the end, snow falls in the hall as well as onstage, which so thrilled an incredulous 8-year-old boy seated near me that he got up and danced in the aisle."[2]

Lawrence Van Gelder reviewed the 2002 production for The New York Times writing, "Music, dance, colorful costumes and atmospheric scenery – all intended to make holiday theatergoing a pleasant family experience – are marshaled here to satisfying effect." Of F. Murray Abraham's performance, Gelder wrote: "Far from the terrifying figure who made blind men's dogs tug their owners into doorways and up courts, Mr. Abraham can scarcely contain the good cheer waiting to burst out in little bits of business before his ghostly encounters."[4]

Jeremy Gerard reviewed the 1994 production for "Variety" writing, "The show begins with a thunderous percussive explosion — rumbling organ, crashing cymbals, blaring brass — on Tony Walton's wraparound London cityscape set that's so big you could park Norma Desmond's mansion in there and never notice it." Gerard continues:

Spectacle is the operative word here. It is done fluidly and — an Ockrent/Stroman trademark — with considerable humor, especially in the first big dance number, "Link by Link," in which a very animated Ghost of Jacob Marley (Jeff Keller) and a platoon of ectoplasmic accomplices outline for Scrooge (Walter Charles) the many ways in which his life has gone wrong. With all its clanging clamor, the scene giddily recalls darker moments from both "Kiss of the Spider Woman" and "Grand Hotel."

Noting the costume design, Gerard said: "For a later dance number, a Christmas ball stunningly set in Fezziwig's Banking House, costume designer William Ivey Long (another "Crazy" alum) has outdone himself, which is saying something, as gown after wildly colorful gown makes its entrance and has its spin.[9]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "A Christmas Carol Additional Facts". A Christmas Carol (Broadway)at Music Theatre International (MTI). Retrieved October 15, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Richards, David (December 2, 1994). "A Famous Miser, Tiny Tim And a Tap-Dancing Chorus". The New York Times. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
  3. Hernandez, Ernio (November 28, 2003). "Ghosts Lead Scrooge in A Christmas Carol for Final MSG Staging, Nov. 28-Dec. 27". Playbill. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  4. 1 2 Van Gelder, Lawrence (December 11, 2002). "Scrooge's Benign Tendencies Slip Out". The New York Times. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
  5. "A Christmas Carol Synopsis and Production". A Christmas Carol (Broadway)at Music Theatre International (MTI). Retrieved January 24, 2010.
  6. Hewis, Ben (October 3, 2017). "Robert Lindsay returns as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol". WhatsOnStage.com. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
  7. Limited, London Theatre Direct (November 26, 2020). "Full casting has been announced for A Christmas Carol". www.londontheatredirect.com. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
  8. Limited, London Theatre Direct (October 16, 2020). "Brian Conley to headline A Christmas Carol at the Dominion Theatre this holiday season!". www.londontheatredirect.com. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
  9. Gerard, Jeremy (December 1, 1994). "Review: 'A Christmas Carol'". variety.com. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
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