Go Behind the Scenes with McCarter's Reimagined A CHRISTMAS CAROL; Cast, Creatives Set!
By: BWW News Desk Nov. 11, 2016
McCarter Theatre Center has announced its reimagined production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Directed by Adam Immerwahr, A Christmas Carol runs December 9 - 31 in the Matthews Theatre. Press opening is Saturday, Dec. 10.
Ebenezer Scrooge (Greg Wood) is not a fan of Christmas. He "bah humbugs" every glimmer of holiday happiness. Cheer is costly and good-will is bad for business. This Christmas, however, things are going to be a little different. In a new look at an annual McCarter tradition, this exciting new production will usher you into the spirit of the season with all the joy, wonder, and generosity that Scrooge himself discovers.
McCarter has created a brand new version of Ebenezer Scrooge's magical journey through Christmas past, present, and future. Combining period-specific music with 21st century design and special effects, a cast of professional actors will be joined by ensemble members chosen from the greater Princeton community. Audiences will experience an immersive Dickensian environment from the opening of the theater doors to the final bows.
Ever since its publication in 1843, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol has come to embody everything that is good and right about the human spirit not only during the holidays, but all throughout the year. Originally written in rebuttal of the squalid working conditions of child laborers in Industrial Age England, A Christmas Carol remains a timeless tale of redemption, hope, and love.
A Christmas Carol combines David Thompson's (The Scottsboro Boys) adaptation with music composed by Michael Friedman (Artistic Director of City Center Encores!), choreography by Lorin Latarro (Waitress), scenic design by Daniel Ostling (Metamorphoses), costumes by Linda Cho (A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder), lighting by Lap Chi Chu (Father Comes Home from the Wars), sound design by Darron L West (Tony Award - Peter and the Starcatcher), and special effects by Jeremy Chernick (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child).
Check out a "Behind the Build" look with set designer Dan Ostling below!
Boasting a gigantic list of Broadway, regional and international credits, the cast of A Christmas Carol features returning McCarter veterans Jessica Bedford (The Mousetrap), Warner Miller (Antony & Cleopatra), Lance Roberts (Sweet+Hot), and JD Taylor (The Understudy). They are joined by first-time McCarter artists Elisha Lawson, Anne L. Nathan, Jamila Sabares-Klemm, A.J. Shively, Sue Jin Song, Greg Wood, and Frank X.
After an extensive audition process, McCarter Theatre Center is proud to welcome the members of the inaugural Community Ensemble and our 2016 Young Ensemble.
The Community Ensemble includes Amy Blair, Tara Parkman, and Kirk Ponton of Ewing, NJ; Kristin Devine of Washington Crossing, PA; Marie Fiorello and Gloria Schnure of Somerset, NJ; Ithamar Francois and Arielle Rabano of Hillsborough, NJ; Lew Gantwerk, Elias Malavet, and Connor Crafton Marrone of Princeton, NJ; Faith E. Iloka and BryannA Martinez-Jimenez of Trenton, NJ; Scott Karlin of Plainsboro, NJ; Stan Karuzis of Lawrence Township, NJ; Jeffrey Knoll of Pennington, NJ; Thom V. Kummerle, Shan Raju, and Sakshi S. Nathan of Princeton Junction, NJ; Camillo and Valencio Lazarczyk of Whitehouse, NJ; Ashley Lynn Medina of Skillman, NJ; Linda Palmarozza of Ambler, PA; and Rupal Patel of West Windsor, NJ.
In addition, two Community Ensemble members have been cast in major roles for this production. Mimi Francis of North Brunswick, NJ will feature as the Ghost of Christmas Present, and Kelsey Carroll of Allentown, NJ will feature in the roles of Fan and Miss Kate.
Watch an interview with Mimi Francis below!
The Young Ensemble is comprised of twelve local children: Graham Beers, Russell Clark, Ivy Cordle, Sofia DaCruz, Xander Kurian, and Gabriella Shapcott of Princeton, NJ; Candace Beverly and Tashi Lakkaraju of Somerset, NJ; Ethan Chang of Princeton Junction, NJ; Miriam Foster-Swartley of Pipersville, PA; Zachary McDevitt of Lawrenceville, NJ; and Liam McKernan of Newtown, PA.
Adam Immerwahr (Director) is the Artistic Director of Theater J, the nation's premier Jewish theater (located in D.C.). Previously, Adam served as Associate Artistic Director at McCarter (credits include The Understudy and The Mousetrap) and Resident Director at Passage Theater. NYC directing credits: The Public, Theater Row (both for Summer Play Festival), Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Wild Project, and NYU's Studio Tisch. Internationally, he directed the African premiere of The Convert (nominated for Zimbabwe's National Arts Medal). He has directed and developed work for Walnut Street, Luna Stage, Hangar Theatre, Bristol Riverside, Premiere Stages, PlayPenn, and others. Winner of 2010 NJ Theatre Alliance "Applause Award" and 2014 Emerging Nonprofit Leader Award presented by Fairleigh Dickinson University's Center for Excellence. Drama League Directing Fellow (2008).
Led by Artistic Director/Resident Playwright Emily Mann and Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, McCarter Theatre Center is a leading destination for playwrights, actors, and directors to collaborate on ambitious world premieres, re-imagined classics, adaptations, and developmental workshops. Awarded the 1994 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, McCarter has evolved into a nationally and internationally acclaimed theatre recognized for its first-rate productions, daring world premieres, and lasting contributions to the American theatrical canon. The theatre is celebrated for its emphasis on the creation and development of new work, marked especially by an on-going program of commissions, an annual artists retreat, and the fostering of long term relationships with emerging and established playwrights.
Among the noteworthy dramatists whose work has received world premieres, developmental productions, and workshops at McCarter are: Edward Albee, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Sarah Treem, Marina Carr, Lydia Diamond, John Guare, Nilo Cruz, Christopher Durang, ReGina Taylor, Beth Henley, Danai Gurira, and Athol Fugard. Many, including Eclipsed, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Having Our Say, Anna in the Tropics, Crowns, Valley Song, and Yellowman, received original workshops at McCarter before moving on to Broadway and/or become some of the most frequently produced plays in the American theater. McCarter is equally recognized for its reinvestigations of the classic canon including Fiasco Theater's reimagined production of Into the Woods, Stephen Wadsworth's acclaimed adaptations of the Marivaux Trilogy and Beaumarchais' Figaro plays, Brian Friel's Translations, and Emily Mann's adaptations of Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard and Lorca's The House of Bernarda Alba.
After the new year, McCarter's Theater Series continues with Bedlam's productions of Saint Joan and Hamlet, Ken Ludwig's adaptation of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express (world premiere), and Lynn Nottage's Intimate Apparel.
Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol runs December 9 - 31 in the Matthews Theatre. Single tickets range from $28 - $93 and are on sale now online at mccarter.org, by phone at (609) 258-2787, or in person at the McCarter Theatre Ticket Office, located at 91 University Place in Princeton.
Pictured: Actors Frank X (Old Marley) and Greg Wood (Scrooge) rehearse during McCarter's summer 2016 workshop for Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
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