BWW Reviews: Trinity Rep Delivers Sparkling, Spirited CHRISTMAS CAROL

Trinity Repertory Company is at the top of its game with this year's production of A Christmas Carol. This is the Company's 37th season presenting Charles Dickens' classic tale, and Trinity once again works theatrical magic to masterfully breathe new life into the familiar account of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge and the ghostly apparitions who visit him one fateful Christmas Eve.

Tyler Dobrowsky returns to the director's chair, having helmed last year's Carol as well. The 2012 production was unquestionably well-presented and highly enjoyable, but 2013's offering is a clear step above with its sharp pacing, fantastic energy, and a sense of genuine, unforced Christmas cheer. Even though many of last year's visuals - from Eugene Lee's impressive clock tower set to Jacob Marley's thoroughly ghostly entrance in Scrooge's bedchamber - make repeat appearances, this is a much tighter production and every element feels thoughtfully connected for a richer presentation. This ensures that while the much-loved Adrian Hall/Richard Cumming adaptation of A Christmas Carol still clocks in at 90 minutes, Trinity's storytelling does not feel rushed or abbreviated in the slightest.

Fred Sullivan, Jr. takes center stage as this year's Scrooge, and he delivers a complete, nuanced performance. Sullivan brings a powerful presence to the role, which gives his Scrooge a more menacing, intimidating edge. While Sullivan effectively employs this forcefulness to enhance Scrooge's bullying and bearlike qualities, he equally well uses quieter moments of biting wit and sarcasm to daunt other characters and drive home the money lender's cold and utterly-hardened worldview. This sass also lends itself to many humorous moments, as Sullivan's dry delivery accentuates Scrooge's snarkiness to full comic advantage.

Sullivan also brings great depth to Scrooge's gradual change of heart. His Ebenezer at first obstinately retains his sangfroid, burying hints of nostalgia and any warm memories under ever-ready, acerbic comebacks. Then subtly, and often when the focal point of a scene is away from him, Sullivan breaks down Scrooge's defenses. The utter softness that steals over Sullivan's expression when Scrooge sees his late sister (Eliana Blumberg) is an especially poignant moment, as is his thunderstruck and guilt-ridden reaction to first glimpsing his lost love, Belle (Carisa Platt).

Scrooge's eventual reclamation - presented here with several clever asides to the audience - is an effervescent moment in the play, but Sullivan tempers the scene well, making for an exultant Ebenezer without descending into caricature. Indeed, in the midst of the scene's attendant laughter (Joe Wilson, Jr. and William John Austin, for instance, have an absolutely spot-on "deer-in-the-headlights" moment as the solicitors for the poor encounter the newly-reformed Scrooge), there is an equal amount of gravity and restraint, reminding the audience of the seriousness of Scrooge's journey, the contriteness of his heart, and the true extent of his transformation.

Stephen Thorne returns to the role of Jacob Marley, and he once again gives the character a solid portrayal both as the penny-pinching miser, desperate at the threshold of death (a very well-choreographed scene, ominously tinged with Marley's coming judgment), and as the otherworldly apparition who visits Scrooge on Christmas Eve. Effective use of the Chace Theater's aisles allows the spectral Marley to slip in and out of the busy crowds Scrooge encounters on his way home, which builds up anticipation for his utterly chilling appearance in Scrooge's bedchamber. Even more ghoulish is Marley's departure, and Thorne plays the scene brilliantly, literally clawing at the floorboards to finish Marley's last lines of warning before his chains drag him back into darkness.

Tom Gleadow also turns in a standout performance as Charles Dickens. Gleadow is thoroughly in his element and approaches Dickens with a distinct air of playfulness and authorial omniscience. Some of his best moments come as narrator Dickens steps into a scene, interacting with the characters while describing their actions in detail for the audience. Gleadow's exchanges with Sullivan just prior to Marley's appearance are golden, first as Scrooge pauses in his intended course to instead lock the door at Dickens' instruction (earning a narrow-eyed glare), and then later when Dickens helps Scrooge into his dressing gown (producing a reluctant grunt of thanks). Gleadow also reprises two roles he filled in last year's Christmas Carol, the ever-cheerful Mr. Fezziwig and the charmingly seedy Old Joe.

Charlie Thurston is excellent in the role of Bob Cratchit. His fawning obsequiousness plays beautifully against Sullivan's imperious Scrooge, and Thurston perfectly executes a laugh-out-loud sketch with an ill-fated lump of coal that Cratchit surreptitiously attempts to add to the office stove. Thurston provides several solid moments of comedy both as Cratchit and later as young Scrooge's fussbudget, high-strung schoolmaster, but he also packs an emotional wallop in Cratchit's more somber moments, particularly in his grief-stricken monologue at Tiny Tim's gravesite.

As always, Trinity brings a creative twist to the presentation of Scrooge's other supernatural guests. The Ghost of Christmas Past (Angela Brazil) appears on stage in a shimmering late-Georgian-era gown, surrounded by several members of the children's cast. Each child serves as extension of the spirit herself; they speak in unison with her, turn their heads as one cohesive unit, and link their arms together to extend across the boards and transport Scrooge into living scenes from his past.

Joe Wilson, Jr. plays the Ghost of Christmas Present, and there is a marvelous rapport between his jolly ghost and Sullivan's caustic Scrooge. The pair banters back and forth, trading zinging barbs in an exercise of one-upmanship. Wilson gets a spotlight entrance, and his costume is eye-catchingly executed in vivid jewel tones and rich fabrics.

Trinity takes an especially unique and unexpected approach to the fearful specter of Christmas Yet-to-Come (please note: spoilers to follow). Building literally from Christmas Present's foreshadowing of Tiny Tim's soon-coming death, an eerie, spectral version of Tim Cratchit (Nicholas Maltais) serves as Scrooge's silent guide to the future. This understated artistic choice is particularly unsettling throughout "Stave IV" of the production, yet it also provides for a heartrending and tender moment as the ghostly figure quietly draws close to the deeply-grieving Bob Cratchit, who stands weeping at his child's graveside.

A Christmas Carol's supporting cast - from Barbara Meek as Mrs. Partlet to William John Austin as the Undertaker's Man to Carisa Platt's turn as Fred's impossibly ditzy sister-in-law - brings great life and energy to every scene, especially when lending their voices to Cumming's original music. The children's company - the Green Cast, on opening night - deserves a special nod for their able handling of multiple roles throughout the performance.

A Christmas Carol plays Trinity Repertory Company's Chace Theater through December 28, 2013. Tickets are available online at www.trinityrep.com, by phone (401) 351-4242, or by visiting the box office at 201 Washington Street, Providence, RI. Adult ticket prices range from $36-$70 and children's tickets are $22-26 (ages 2-14); $15 bench seating is also available. Contact the box office for group rate information.

Photo by Mark Turek.

To post a comment, you must register and login.