Guthrie Theater Completes Casting for 'A Christmas Carol'

The Guthrie is proud to announce complete casting for its 34th production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol on the Wurtele Thrust Stage. Adapted by Barbara Field and again under the direction of Gary Gisselman, A Christmas Carol will feature actor Raye Birk, who returns to play Ebenezer Scrooge for the fourth consecutive year. A Christmas Carol begins previews November 18, opens November 21 and plays through December 31, 2008. Tickets are priced from $29 to $70 and are on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612.377.2224, toll-free 877.44.STAGE and online at www.guthrietheater.org.

Ebenezer Scrooge greets each Christmas with his well-known “bah humbug,” until one Christmas Eve he learns that his stinginess and uncaring attitude will doom him to walk the earth after death wearing a heavy chain created by his selfish ways. The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet to Come visit Scrooge during a restless night, showing him happy memories from his past, cruel realities from the present and the desolate future should he continue his cantankerous ways. Inspired by Charles Dickens’ immortal story, this perennial holiday production returns for its 34th year at the Guthrie.

Filled with music, magic and holiday spirit, this classic tale of redemption and the true meaning of the festive season has brought joy to thousands of theatergoers since the Guthrie’s first staging in 1975. More than 800 actors have appeared in the Guthrie’s A Christmas Carol over the last 33 years, including many recognizable names – both local favorites like Richard Ooms, Sally Wingert and Isabell Monk O’Connor, as well as actors who have flourishing careers outside the Twin Cities in film and television, such as Peter Michael Goetz, T.R. Knight and Charles Keating.

The cast of this year’s production is comprised of 42 adult and child actors, including Raye Birk, Michael Booth, Ally Carey, Laura Esping, Wayne A. Evenson, Nathaniel Fuller, Elizabeth Griffith, Jon Andrew Hegge, Kathleen Humphrey, Hugh Kennedy, Michael Kissin, Bill McCallum, Ann Michels, Lee Mark Nelson, Richard Ooms, Sherwin F. Resurreccion, John Skelley, Elizabeth Stahlmann, Vern Sutton, Suzanne Warmanen and Sally Wingert.

The artistic staff for A Christmas Carol includes Gary Gisselman (Director), Neil Patel (Set Designer), Jess Goldstein (Costume Design 1996), David Kay Mickelsen (Additional Costume Design), Marcus Dilliard (Lighting Designer), Victor Zupanc (Composer), Anita Ruth (Musical Director), Scott W. Edwards (Sound Designer), Michael Lupu (Dramaturgy), Elisa Carlson (Voice and Dialect Coach), MyRon Johnson (Associate Director/Movement Coach), Martha Kulig (Stage Manager), Robert Goudy (Assistant Director) and Jason Clusman (Assistant Stage Manager).

 
About the Guthrie

The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is an American center for theater performance, production, education and professional training. The Guthrie is dedicated to producing the great works of dramatic literature, developing the work of contemporary playwrights and cultivating the next generation of theater artists. Led by Director Joe Dowling since 1995, the Guthrie recently moved to their new three-theater home on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis.

The Guthrie is located at 818 South 2nd Street (at Chicago Avenue), in downtown Minneapolis. To purchase tickets or season subscriptions call the Guthrie Box Office between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily at 612.377.2224 or toll-free 877.44.STAGE. For more information, or to purchase tickets online, visit www.guthrietheater.org.