Theater Review - God bless ’em, every one

So many versions of A Christmas Carol, so little time

By Curt Holman Wednesday November 22, 2006 12:04 AM EST

A Christmas Carol could be billed as “the story that saved Christmas.” Charles Dickens initially wrote his “Ghost Story of Christmas” to pay off a debt, yet the slim volume proved an instant success, selling 6,000 copies within a week of its publication in 1843. Literary historians have argued that over the long term, Dickens’ book helped revive Christmas traditions from a decline in early Victorian England.

??
The tale of Ebenezer Scrooge has gone from rescuing traditions to becoming a tradition in its own right, with constant interpretations on stage and screen, including versions with Muppets, Bill Murray, Susan Lucci and Rowan Atkinson’s Blackadder. Arguably, Frank Capra’s classic 1947 film, It’s a Wonderful Life (getting a theatrical staging at Dahlonega’s Holly Theatre), simply Americanizes the story, turning miserly Scrooge into Mr. Potter and bestowing the supernatural visions on Jimmy Stewart’s archetypal small-town underdog, George Bailey.

??
More than any other holiday play, A Christmas Carol helps fill the stockings of playhouses and keeps them viable through tight economic times. You can’t tell the Scrooges without a guide, although this overview only scratches the surface; missing are Roswell’s Kudzu Playhouse and Woodstock’s Towne Lake Art Center. Our apologies.



?

??EXACT TITLE?A Christmas Carol?A Christmas Carol?A Broadway Christmas Carol??
?VENUE?The Alliance Theatre?The Shakespeare Tavern?ART Station??
?THE APPROACH?Multicultural holiday jamboree mixing classic Christmas carols, African-American gospel, Dickensian costumes and expensive stage effects, adapted by David H. Bell?Intimate, subdued production in appropriate English tavern setting?A musical take on Dickens unified by Christmas-themed parodies of familiar Broadway show tunes??
?NUMBER OF
?YEARS STAGED?		17?7, counting the company’s previous “storyteller” versions of the show?2??
?NUMBER OF
?ACTORS?		23?8, many in multiple roles?3??
?SCROOGE?Chris Kayser?Drew Reeves?David Silverman??
?TINY TIM?8-year-old Tendal Jarrett Mann?Grown-up Matt Felton?Grown-up Geoff Uterhardt??
?Prominent song?“Joy to the World” ends an evening that features 16 Christmas songs.?“Deck the Halls”?The show-stopping “Ebenezer!” sung to the tune of “Oklahoma!”??
?When & Where?Nov. 24-Dec. 24. The Alliance Theatre Co., 1280 Peachtree St. 404-733-5000. www.alliancetheatre.org.?Dec. 7-23. The Shakespeare Tavern, 499 Peachtree St. 404-874-5299. www.shakespearetavern.com.?Nov. 24-Dec. 23. ART Station, 5384 Manor Drive, Stone Mountain. 770-469-1105. www.artstation.org.??
??

 

?

??EXACT TITLE?The 1940s Radio Hour?A Christmas Carol?A Christmas Carol??
?VENUE?Theatre in the Square?Theatre on Main (formerly Cobb Playhouse)?The Renaissance Project??
?THE APPROACH?A World War II-era live radio show featuring a funny, compressed version of A Christmas Carol as a comedic centerpiece.?Basic, straight-up Dickens adapted by Margaret Raether for Acworth’s historic downtown?Basic, straight-up Dickens adapted by Michael H. Cole and staged at the Cathedral at Chapel Hill??
?NUMBER OF
?YEARS STAGED?		25 — but this will be the last one.?4?Previously produced in 2001??
?NUMBER OF
?ACTORS?		11?19?20??
?SCROOGE?Luis R. Hernandez?Barry Hopkins?Michael H. Cole??
?TINY TIM?The play-within-the-play doesn’t get that far.?Nicholas Rowlands, age 8?5-year-old Caleb Grizzell??
?Prominent song?“I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” emphasizing the war-time relevance?The production includes no singing?The production includes no singing.??
?When & Where?Nov. 12-Jan. 7, Theatre in the Square’s Alley Stage, 11 Whitlock Ave. 770-422-8369. www.theatreinthesquare.com.?Dec. 1-23, Cobb Playhouse, N. Main Street, Acworth. 770-565-3995. www.cobbplayhouse.com.?Dec. 1-10. The Cathedral at Chapel Hill, 4650 Flat Shoals Parkway, Decatur. 404-243-6937. www.renaissanceproject.info.??
??

?





Departments