What a way to enjoy the festive season, partaking in the Old Vic’s rendition of A Christmas Carol adapted by Jack Thorne. In this interactive and very musical performance, we see Ebenezer Scrooge excellently played by John Simm. It’s a complex character whose façade of meanness and parsimoniousness belies a deeply troubled soul forced to confront his ghosts who show him his fate unless he changes course.
We all know of or have read the book by Dickens, and in this production also, director Matthew Warchus gives us a glimpse into Scrooge’s past life: there’s his sister, Fan, played by Georgina Sadler, whom he loved and lost. Then there’s the woman he had his heart set on marrying, Belle, played by Juliette Crosby, who’s introduced to Scrooge by her father, who is also Ebenezer’s first employer, Mr Fezziwig, played by Alastair Parker. But Fezziwig’s plans to make Scrooge his successor don’t seem enough for a young man who felt that his ambitions should exceed that of being the owner of a small-time undertaker’s firm, opting instead to become a money-lender.
If only his earlier self could put aside his desires to earn more and more before he musters up the presence of mind to finally propose to Belle. By the time he does, the narrative goes, she has found another. Such is Scrooge’s misplaced philosophy that he couldn’t let go of his thirst for the power, comfort and security that money can offer.
Against this sits the understanding that the audience comes to gain, namely that Scrooge’s fears result from a tough background, when the young Ebenezer, played by Connor Wood, is forced out to work at an early age. But his life continues as such, with his obsessions overriding his ability to actually experience life. John Simm’s portrayal of the character that we have all come to know so well is in fact the perfect embodiment of what Oscar Wilde aptly described as a cynic, namely “a man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.”
And so we are transported, somewhat sympathetically, in and out of Scrooge’s inner world and his regrets for the life he could have had. But these scenes are intermingled with plenty of jollity—there’s much singing and dancing alongside music from bells and flutes and cellos. And to really get into the festivity, foam snow lands softly in the auditorium, where the actors hand out mince pies and satsumas to anyone fancying an early taste of Christmas.
Eventually, as in the novel, Scrooge transforms. He goes to Belle’s house, where they both accept the journeys that their lives have now taken while poignantly expressing regrets of the happiness they could have had if their paths had aligned. Then he meets with his nephew, Fred, played by Ahmed Hamad, son of his beloved Fan, whose invitation to Christmas lunch, as well as to his home and heart, Scrooge had previously rebuffed.
Then off to the house of his dutiful employee, Cratchit, played by Rob Compton. Despite the appalling treatment Cratchit receives at the hands of Scrooge, he remains grateful and subservient. Cratchit, his wife, played by Kimmy Edwards, and his family usually share a tiny pot of stew. This Christmas, Scrooge 2.0 arrives with a feast in which the audience is made to delight: sheets hanging from the top banisters of the stage become slides that transport potatoes, sprouts and all the parts needed for a proper Christmas dinner, the likes of which the Cratchit family have never seen. Their son Tiny Tim whose role is shared by four actors - Casey-Indigo Blackwood-Lashley, Freddie Marshall-Ellis, Freddie Merritt and Vinnie Stone - and who is especially wide eyed but handles Scrooge with more skill than his father is able to.
Then there’s a giant turkey that’s also hoisted down, all adding to the thrill and cavalcade of entertainment parading on stage that’s arranged in a cross shape, courtesy of set designer Rob Howell. It’s all very energetic and physical, and the highly diverse cast of actors are clearly enjoying their parts and personas as they mingle with the onlooking crowd.
As with the Dickens novel, the treatment of the poor and the ability of a selfish man closed off to life to redeem himself by becoming someone who shares the fruits of his labour are key to this performance. Whether it has roots in the Christian allegory or is a purely secular tale remains a topic of debate amongst scholars and critics, but either way, it’s stood the test of time because A Christmas Carol can be said to be highly relevant to today where 14 million people in the UK live in poverty.
Published in 1843 on 19 December, the first edition sold out by Christmas Eve. Thirteen editions were released the following year and the book has never been out of print. Likewise, this production at the Old Vic is running for the eighth year and this too still has much life ahead of it.