On December 6th 2018, I went and viewed the play A Christmas Carol at the Bradenton Kiwanis Theater in Bradenton, Florida. The tickets were twenty-seven dollars each and the play started at precisely 7:30pm. It lasted approximately seventy minutes and had no intermission due to it only having one act. A Christmas Carol was written by Charles Dickens with the assistance of Shona McKellar as well.
To begin, I believe that the goal of the play is to portray the beauty of Christmas and the love that should be properly spread throughout this time of the year. I personally believe that the play was extremely well produced and acted to give it a strong Christmas feel. Each actor did a fantastic job at displaying their role successfully and connecting with the audience in the most affective way possible. The episodic narrative built created a symbolic meaning to each scene and allowed for the audience to question what was going to happen next.
A Christmas Carol is set in London, England and takes place during the times of the Industrial Revolution. Moreover, the stage design makes it appear as if it is a rather poor section of London. The plot starts by telling the story of a mean-spirited old English man by the name of Ebenezer Scrooge. Scrooge holds a strong dislike for Christmas and will do whatever it takes to avoid the so called “Christmas spirit” at all costs. Early on, Scrooge is visited by his nephew Fred who invites him to his family’s annual Christmas dinner.
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He refuses to take up this offer and proceeds to deny two women who ask him for a donation to their local charity. After returning to his apartment that same evening, Scrooge receives an unexpected visit from the ghost of his dead partner, Jacob Marley. Marley came to warn Scrooge of the unfortunate story that took place after his death and how he is to now constantly wander the earth to only be weighted down by heavy chains everywhere he goes. At this point, Marley soon disappears after informing Scrooge that he will be visited by three spirits on each of the next three nights. I love how miserable the actor portrayed Marley and the accurate display of what happens if you do not respect such a lovely holiday.
Moments later, Scrooge falls asleep to only be waken by the Ghost of Christmas Past. The spirit takes him on a journey through the previous Christmases and the love that was shared by families he knew personally. Invisible to everyone he watches, Scrooge even gets a chance to see his past lover. At this point, we see Scrooge’s first sign of emotion towards his past loved ones, but he does not fully understand why he feels this way yet. He is then promptly returned to his bed and greeted as he awakes by the Ghost of Christmas Present. This spirit is much more upbeat then the rest and truly begins to show Scrooge the impact he has had. He takes Scrooge through London to show what will happen during Christmas this year.
Eventually, the spirit takes him to the Cratchit family feast in which his clerk Bob Cratchit is the father of this rather poor family. Scrooge discovers Cratchit’s crippled son, Tiny Tim, who warms his heart due to the boy’s overwhelming kindness. It is at this moment that Scrooge encourages the spirit to let him stay and watch the rest of the family festivity. Unfortunately, the spirit ages as the day grows older and he cannot continue much longer. The last thing the spirit shows him is two starving children whom he deems as Ignorance and Want.
Soon after, the spirit disappears to be only replaced by The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. This scene perhaps portrays the climax of the play when Scrooge notices a tombstone with his name on it after witnessing several people argue over his riches. He begs the spirit to alter his fate and that he promises to honor Christmas for all it offers. This scene perfectly relates to the goal of the story as it shows the true power of Christmas and what it means to treat others how you would want to be treated. Lastly, Scrooge finds himself in his bed once again to only wander what will happen to him next. He is pleasantly surprised to realize the second chance he has been given to truly display his Christmas Spirit. He sends a giant turkey to Fred’s dinner and later attends it to be happily greeted by the other guests. He also gives Bob a raise in pay and gives back to the poor and local charities while treating Tiny Tim like he is one of his own.
The production of the play was great with a combination of acting, costume and stage design, and lighting aiding all in the process. The acting was extremely good considering many of the actors were rather young and took on roles that personified major parts of the Christmas story. The costume design was very well done and provided the audience with a warming experience seeing many of the well-known Christmas colors such as green and red display throughout all of the stage. Scrooge supported a rather darker costume which helped separate him from the rest of the cast.
This was a unique touch that ultimately did its intended job well. Lastly, the lighting was perhaps the best part of the show as it darkened in moments of serious context, but proceeded to lighten when the mood was lifted. It properly followed each character who acted as the lead in each scene and made them stand out from the rest without completely disregarding the other characters involved. Due to the seats being so close to the stage, the experience also felt very personable.
In conclusion, the play was definitely worth doing and I believe it did achieve its intended goal in the end. Religious or not, Christmas it supposed to be a time where you are surrounded by the ones you love and care for. The actors and stage designers did an amazing job at making this happen. I do in fact recommend this to other patrons and I believe it is a great play for all ages included.
