REVIEW: A CHRISTMAS CAROL—South Coast Repertory
- TheShowReport
- 2 days ago
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Updated: 32 minutes ago
Every scene is a verbal banquet — so impactful, you can almost smell the turkeys, plum puddings, oranges and chestnuts resting on the tables.
DECEMBER 13—COSTA MESA
Before all the movies, television adaptations, stage plays and animated versions; before all of this, Charles Dickens (“the man who invented Christmas”) wrote a short story called A CHRISTMAS CAROL.
The story, which only took him six weeks to write, centers upon the spiritual redemption of an old mean-tempered, moneylender named Scrooge, whose very name now epitomizes greed and miserliness, a heartless man of business who seems to thrive on the despair of others.
Debuting on SCR’s stage in December 1980, Jerry Patch’s adaptation of Dickens’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL moved audiences back then, and even more so now in timeless universal quality as they experience Scrooge’s transformation along with the character. Back then, it had clowned more and reveled in un-Dickensian pratfalls. Not anymore. Laughs are still there, but they’re honest laughs, and a respectable depth has been found to give it the heart, warmth and empathy it deserves.
Until that transformation, howevee, Scrooge offers no pity toward the poor, and his heartless tirade at the esteemed couple who comes collecting for the poor on Christmas Eve (“If they would rather die… they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population”) sticks out as the most incriminating indictment of his character.
Hisa Takakuwa’s weightless direction finds many of those darker moments, and thus, many of the actors who have been playing their roles for decades find that time has made their performances progressively richer. The special effects, gorgeous sets and the entire look and feel of the production remain superlative, like vintage champagne ready to uncork, a good sign that the company knows how to hone the story’s inherent charm and keep its simple story fresh. And, as for Scrooge himself, nobody “bah-humbugs” quite like actor Richard Doyle. Or so effortlessly flips into a top hat and comes up ready to greet Christmas Day in such Victorian style.
His reputation preceding him, Mr. Doyle’s Scrooge is appropriately cantankerous, yet comedic in his movements, as he searches his dark bedroom for the source of a ghastly noise. Some of the production's best moments live in the hazy space that is under the breath mutterings, when Mr. Doyle gives half spoken thoughts while simultaneously portraying Scrooge thinking them.
The production has a surprising amount of humor, with Mr. Doyle teasing loosely with the fourth wall, finding laughs in some very unlikely places. You may even come to love and respect him before it's all over. And at the end when Scrooge says he feels as "light as a feather," just watch how Mr. Doyle giddily floats around the stage.
The set has also evolved over time, with the current design by Tom Buderwitz. And since the central performance is so warm and dynamic, it’s a big bonus that the visuals are so engaging. During the opening scenes, the miserable Scrooge is in his mausoleum of an office on Christmas Eve with his assistant, Bob Cratchit, and then he is seen in his lonely apartment, which is swaddled in shadows and gloom, relieved only by a lamp here or there. But with the grisly, sickly arrival of his business partner Jacob Marley and the three spirits who guide Scrooge through past, present, and future, the space eventually blazes with brilliant color.
At one time or another, Mr. Doyle has played other characters, including the Solicitor, Joe, Mr. Fezziwig and even Scrooge’s nephew Fred. And although he never portrayed Bob Cratchit, he did marry one of Bob’s wives (the actress Jennifer Parsons, who presently plays the Spirit of Christmas Past, Scrooge’s second visitation).
Next, representing the ephemerality of human life, the Spirit of Christmas Present comes as a giant bearded man dressed in a deep green capacious robe edged in fur, a holly wreath upon his dark curly hair. His jolly, twinkling eyes are clear and full of mirth and his voice is full of good cheer. One can see the basis of Father Christmas in the portrayal. This Spirit has only one purpose — to show Ebenezer Scrooge how others live.
And finally, the most forbidding of all…the silent, ominously shrouded Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come, which becomes a wake-up call to Ebeneezer when confronted with the idea of his sudden death and public indifference.
On the design aspect, Richard Odle's costumes are both period specific and eye catching, especially with the Spirit of Christmas Present, that avatar of the spirit of the season, which Richard Soto plays with winning verve. And, lthough the production is light on singing and dancing outside of a few holiday carols, choreographer Sylvia Turner and Director Takakuwa keep the large ensemble moving effortlessly and cheerfully throughout the production.
A few citations for the splendid group of stage veterans include7 Louis Lotorto as Scrooge’s heartwarming put-upon clerk, Bob Cratchit. His scenes with his family are touching and sincere, and the way he quakes around the stern Scrooge is exactly the way someone with a horrendous boss would react. Eduardo Enrikez is Joe, the scurrilous cider salesman; and William Francis McGuire’s return as Fezziwig, Scrooge's first employer, is full of life, love and laughter.
Sharon Omi is an incredible, good-humored Mrs. Fezziwig; Michael Manuel is both funereal and great fun as Jacob Marley’s Ghost; Richard Soto (also a Wreath Seller), is joyous as the aforementioned earthy, ultra-merry Spirit of Christmas Present; and Jennifer Parsons is fascinating to watch as The Spirit of Christmas Past.
Tommy Beck plays the Undertaker, and an inflexible Ebenezer as a Young Man; an impressive Larry Bates (also Gentlemen) brings great sincerity and charm to Scrooge’s ever-hopeful nephew, Fred; Awni Abdi-Bahri is Elizabeth Shelley as well as a lovely Belle; Rachel Bailey is a Pursued Maiden; Nick Slimmer portrays the daunting apparition The Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come and Thomas Shelley; Tom Anawalt is the young bachelor Topper; Beatrice Main and Natalie Yokota alternate as Oliver Shelley, Ignorance, and Ebenezer as a Boy.
Taylor Hershelman and Megan Chan alternate as Want, and Young Girl About Town; Fiona Nguyen and Presley Coogan alternate as Teen Girl About Town; Diana Barbano is perfect wife and mother, Mrs. Cratchit, and a Rich Woman; Erika Schindele is Fred’s wife, Sally, a Toy Lady and a Scavenger; and Elliot Lee and Thomas Lindley alternate as Turkey Boy and the Chimney Sweep.
The Cratchit children are well played alternately by Yunah Choi and Penelope Main as Belinda and a Rich Girl; Tessany Azizi and Aya Hanai as Martha; Isaac Person and Matthew Chan as Peter and a Rich Boy; and Ivy Granadino and Saher Chawla as a very charming Tiny Tim.
Mr. Doyle is, however, the centerpiece, and truly magnificent — a master purveyor of polymorphous perversity. He seems to actually revel in the source material, and his portrayal contains multitudes of nuance, while at the same time giving us multitudinous pleasure, finding fresh corners to inhabit and illuminate.
But when the story isn't touching, and when it isn't scary, when it isn’t funny, the production is joyous. There is joy in Scrooge's Christmas past at Fezziwig's, joy in the Cratchits' small but sufficient Christmas dinner, and joy in Scrooge's ultimate transformation. And the latter isn't confined to the joy of rediscovering the Christmas spirit, but extends to the joy of simply being alive. And for theatre-lovers, there is the joy of watching a talented and accomplished actor bring the whole story beautifully to life, all with the language of Dickens ringing soundly throughout.
CAST: RICHARD DOYLE; RICHARD SOTO; DAVID NEVELL; KACI HAMILTON; MICHAEL POLAK; NICK SLIMMER; BEATRICE MAIN; NATALIE YOKOTA; AWNI ABDI-BAHRI; TOMMY BECK; EDUARDO ENRIKEZ; TAYLOR HERSHELMAN; MEGAN CHAN; ERIKA SCHINDELE; SHARON OMI; WILLIAM FRANCIS MCGUIRE; FIONA NGUYEN; PRESLEY COOGAN; TESSANY AZIZI; AYA HANAI; RACHEL BAILEY; LARRY BATES; TOM ANAWAH; LOUIS LOTORTO; ISAAC PERSON; MATTHEW CHAN; YUNAH CHOI; PENELOPE MAIN; DIANA BURBANO; ELLIOT LEE; THOMAS LINDLEY; MICHAEL MANUEL; JENNIFER PARSONS; IVY GRANADINO; SAHER CHAWLA; DIANA BURBANO.
The 45th Annual Production of A CHRISTMAS CAROL by CHARLES DICKENS, Adapted by JERRY PATCH and Directed by HISA TAKAKUWA (from the original staging of JOHN-DAVID KELLER), at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, Calif., through Dec. 28, 2025. Scenic Design by THOMAS BUDERWITZ; Costumes by DWIGHT RICHARD ODLE; Choreography by SYLVIA TURNER; Sound Design by Drew Dalzell; Lighting Design by DONNA & TOM RUZIKA; Musical Arrangements & Composition by DENNIS MCCARTHY; Dialect Coach is David Nevell; Stage Management by TALIA KRISPEL; Casting by JOANNE DENAUT, CSA; Artistic Director is DAVID IVERS; Managing Director is SUZANNE APPEL.
David Nevell will play the role of Ebenezer Scrooge on Dec. 21st at 12PM and Dec. 22nd at 7PM. South Coast Repertory is located at 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. For more information and to purchase tickets visit www.scr.org.
CHRIS DANIELS
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT REVIEWER
THE SHOW REPORT
PHOTO CREDITS: Scott Smeltzer/SCR
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