BWW Reviews: CM PAC Presents Madison Square Garden's A CHRISTMAS CAROL, THE MUSICAL

My journey with the cast of A Christmas Carol, The Musical, now playing at Creative Ministries Performing Arts Center (CMPAC), comes to end with their opening. With music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and book by Ms. Ahrens and Mike Ockrent, this wonderful cast surely didn't disappoint. Now playing through December 30th at the Oakdale, Long Island, theatre, you're in for a wonderful evening when you see this Timothy Pappalardo directed production originally presented by Madison Square Garden.

Based on the Charles Dickens' novel, the classic story follows Ebenezer Scrooge in his search for the Christmas spirit. Leading the cast as Mr. Scrooge was Mike Newman. This was a tough score to sing and being on stage for the majority of the two-act show, Mr. Newman did a wonderful job portraying everyone's favorite miserable miser. One of the strongest numbers was his rendition on "Nothing To Do With Me".

Another stand out was Shane Fallacara who portrayed The Ghost Of Jacob Marley. His rendition of "Link By Link" where Marley is telling Scrooge about his possible fate after his death unless he changes his ways was another favorite amongst the nearly sold out audience.

The set was well thought through. Primarily, they brought in the sides of the stage a little bit. This gaveOne side flipped out to reveal the entrance/living room to the home of Scrooge's nephew, Fred, portrayed by Brian Frank. The other side revealed the Kitchen of Bob Cratchit, Scrooge's

employee, portrayed by Danny Amy. There was also an upstairs they used for the room of Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit's disabled son, portrayed by the absolutely adorable Sebastian Jolley.

The costumes, done by Debbie Parker, were beautiful. Set in the 1900's, the gowns the ladies wore were stunning with perfectly coifed wigs and the men donned top hats and suits with tails. One beautiful piece was a robe worn by The Ghost of Christmas Present, portrayed by James M. Lotito, Jr. It was a holly green floor length piece with this vines running up and down the entire robe. All in all, the entire cast looked amazing.

No matter how many times you see this beloved story in whatever incarnation, CMPAC's production proves that it never gets old. A beautifully talented cast and this classic piece will surely bring you into the Christmas spirit.

Creative Ministries Performing Arts Center of Oakdale, Long Island, presents Madison Square Gardens' A Christmas Carol, The Musical through December 30th. Based on the story by Charles Dickens, Music by Alan Menken, Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, Book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens, Directed and Set Design by Timothy Pappalardo, Musical Director Christopher Mckee, Choreographer Alyse Arpino, Costume Design by Debbie Parker, Lighting Design by Joseph Naftal, Sound Design by Don Hanna, Stage Manger is Anthony Wuorio. For more information and to purchase tickets, please call 631-218-2810 or visit www.cmpac.com. A special thank you to Tim Papalardo for asking me to tag along as this production got up and running.

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