"A Christmas Carol" - Adaptation by Troy Siebels - Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts (Worcester, MA.) - REVIEW
(Cover Photo: A scene from "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" playing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA. through December 23, 2023. Photo Courtesy Hanover Theatre)
By Kevin T. Baldwin
METRMAG Reviewer
# 774-242-6724
“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has many - not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some." - Charles Dickens
The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts
Presents its Annual Production of
Charles Dickens'
"A CHRISTMAS CAROL"
Written by Charles Dickens
Adapted and Directed by Troy Siebels
Musical Director & Organist Timothy Evans
Choreographer Ilyse Robbins^
Cast Includes: Abhimanyu Katyal* as “Timothy”; John Little* as “Ebenezer Scrooge”; Shelly Willis Fawson as “Vendor, Suzannah”; Aathaven Tharmarajah* as “Bob Cratchit”; Daniel Reardon* as “Fred”; Jermaine L. Pearson* as “Charitable Gentleman, Ghost of Christmas Present”; Steve Gagliastro* as “Charitable Gentleman, Mr. Fezziwig, Old Joe”; Amy Barker* as “Charwoman”; Brad Reinking* as “Ghost of Jacob Marley”; Lillian Rogers as “Ghost of Christmas Past, Match Girl”; Chris Bardizbanian as “Young Scrooge, Ignorance”; Corinne Sweeney as “Fan, Want”; Charlotte Siebels as “Youth Ensemble”; Aidan Leach as “Dick Wilkins”; Aidan Levinson as “Young Ebenezer”; Annie Kerins* as “Mrs. Fezziwig”; Marta Rymer* as “Laundress, Fiddler”; Channing Rion as “Belle”; Alka Nayyar* as “Mrs. Cratchit”; Sahana Sankar as “Martha Cratchit”; Shriram Shenoy as “Peter Cratchit”; Alexis Anu Thakkallapalli as “Belinda Cratchit”; Samarth Shenoy as “Tiny Tim”; Laura D. DeGiacomo* as “Millie, Fred's wife”; Michael Skrzek* as “Topper”; Maggie M. Clark as “Lucy”; Joel Kaimakani Libed* as “Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come”; Ash Quasney-Sandler as “Newsboy.”
Additional Creative Team:
Associate Director/Associate Music Director - Steve Gagliastro*; Associate Director/Associate Choreographer - Annie Kerins*; Set Designer - James Kronzer+; Costume Designer - Gail Astrid Buckley+; Lighting Designer - Charlie Morrison+; Sound Designer - Nick Joyce; Flying Effects - On the Fly Productions LLC; Production Stage Manager - Jane Siebels*; Assistant Stage Managers - Melissa Daroff* and Lisa Wondolowski*; VP Operations and Production - Lisa Hackman; Production Manager - Chadyn Case; Production Associate - Abby Ray; Production Assistant - Alyssa Morales; Assistant Costume Designer - Ryan C. Goodwin; Wardrobe Supervisor - Amelia Woodbury; Master Electrician - Matt Chrostowski; Head Carpenter - Mark Apholt; Rehearsal Accompanists - Jim Rice and Sean Redrow; Puppet Hand Fabricators - Chadyn Case and Amanda Bohart; South Asian Cultural Consultant - Alka Nayyar*; Dialect Consultant - Ashleigh Reade; Child Supervisor - Lyndsey Hawkes
* Member of Actors' Equity Association
+ Member of United Scenic Artists
^ Stage Directors and Choreographers Society
Performances:
December 16, 2023 through December 23, 2023
(Contact Box Office for Exact Times)
*Enjoy a pre-show concert featuring the Mighty Wurlitzer Organ, the largest and most versatile theatre pipe organ in New England, led by A Christmas Carol Music Director Tim Evans!
Presented at the HANOVER THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, 2 Southbridge St., Worcester.
For More Information:
877-571-SHOW (7469) info@thehanovertheatre.org
Tickets:
Tickets are $32, $52 and $62 depending on seat location. Discounts are available for Broadway subscribers and active conservatory families. Please contact the box office at 877-571-7469 for more information and to inquire about accessible seating options.
BUY TICKETS
COVID 19 PROTOCOLS
Contact Venue for Most Updated COVID-19 Safety Protocols and Information.
"A CHRISTMAS CAROL" is back at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester and it is as fabulous as ever.
The 2023 holiday season is in full swing as the city of Worcester celebrates year 16 of Hanover Theatre Executive Director Troy Siebels’ live "CHRISTMAS CAROL" adaptation of the iconic holiday tale by Charles Dickens.
Once again, during this festive time, theatregoers will enjoy the unique, inventive production that is Hanover Theatre’s annual production of "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" and, in this latest staging, Siebels’ diverse and inclusive rendering of the Dickensian story using the ensemble serving as narrators continues.
It is difficult, these days, to imagine any production of "CHRISTMAS CAROL" - a show that has been staged endlessly and seemingly performed ad nauseum - to be considered as anything "unique."
Siebels’ production, however, absolutely earns that description thanks to the combined effort by the Hanover Theatre creative team, its superb cast and ensemble.
As usual, the ensemble blends marvelous returning cast members with new and varied voices, guided by longtime "CHRISTMAS CAROL" veteran, Associate Director and Associate Music Director Steve Gagliastro, Associate Director and Associate Choreographer Annie Kerins, and with accomplished music direction provided by Timothy Evans (who also plays the Mighty Wurlitzer).
Audiences can again expect to enjoy incredible lighting, special effects, traditional holiday carols that propel the story along, gigantic, sumptuously designed sets, beautifully period-consistent costumes and solid choreography courtesy of Ilyse Robbins.
(Photo: A scene from Troy Siebels' adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" playing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA. through December 23, 2023. Photo Courtesy Hanover Theatre)
Globally speaking, "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" is undoubtedly the most adapted story by Charles Dickens, which is truly stating something given the late author's other credits (“The Pickwick Papers,” “Oliver Twist,” “Nicholas Nickleby,” “David Copperfield,” “Bleak House,” “Little Dorrit,” “A Tale of Two Cities,” “Great Expectations”).
Each year, the play’s adapter and director, Troy Siebels, updates the show while still maintaining its original and traditional charm.
At 16 years now, "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" still remains the high quality staging that Worcester residents and other Hanover theatregoers have come to expect.
2023 continues the "CHRISTMAS CAROL" fondness for ongoing text evolution by Siebels who tweaks and enhances the Dickens’ story each year in order to maintain its high level of relevancy in an ever-changing world.
Returning as old skinflint "Ebenezer Scrooge" is actor John Little, who is masterful in his portrayal of the bitter old miser.
The supporting ensemble is as strong as ever, blending in traditional choreography by Ilyse Robbins to seamlessly boost Siebels’ adaptation.
(Photo: A scene from Troy Siebels' adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" playing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA. through December 23, 2023. Photo Credit David Costa Photography)
"A CHRISTMAS CAROL" is a story of one man’s redemption (‘Scrooge’), carrying with it a message of how people should interact with each other.
The use of traditional holiday musical selections, dazzling technical effects and an overall welcoming visual ambience are consistent with prior years of the Hanover Theatre production.
Brad Reinking is outstanding, portraying anguished apparition "Jacob Marley" who comes to warn Scrooge about impending events which will, at the very least, prove graver than Scrooge could ever imagine.
The scene was, as usual, a true technical masterpiece and something which has become a tradition of meeting annual “great expectations” of the scene (sorry - just had to).
Marley informs Scrooge of the spirits coming to haunt Scrooge.
Those spirits include the ethereal "Ghost of Christmas Past" (Lillian Rogers, who also appears as a “Match Girl”), the jovial "Ghost of Christmas Present" (Jermaine L. Pearson, who also doubles as a “Charitable Gentleman”) and the soul-stirring “Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come” (Joel Kaimakani Libed).
Rogers, Pearson and Libed each give commendable performances in their respective portrayals of the spirits who guide Scrooge through his comeuppance and reformation.
(Photo: A scene from Troy Siebels' adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" playing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA. through December 23, 2023. Photo Credit Erb Dufault Photography)
Consistent with recent past Hanover "CHRISTMAS CAROL" productions, part of this show's ongoing evolution includes South Asian representation in the form of "Bob Cratchit" and the "Cratchit Family."
Similar to last year’s production, the entire Cratchit family participates in their respective scenes as a typical South Asian family of the time period - which, in turns, brings the audience closer into the lives of the Cratchits, as a result.
This is not the only element of practiced inclusivity, but it is the one most pronounced and not once does anything seem “out of place” within the time period. If anything, it corrects an omission of what was probably closer to the truth during this period.
Playing "Bob Cratchit" is Aathaven Tharmarajah who brings good-natured humor to the ever-optimistic Cratchit who, in spite of a cruel employer, horrendous working conditions, oppressive poverty and an ailing child, never loses sight of the true blessings he does have in his life - his family.
Alka Nayyar is charming as “Mrs. Cratchit” elevating the various exchanges with her husband as played by Tharmarajah.
A Sanskrit chanting of a mantra is included in a critical scene, underscored by the beautifully rendered "Coventry Carol," thus heightening the impact of this pivotal moment within the Cratchit family.
(Photo: A scene with the "Cratchit Family" from Troy Siebels' adaptation of Charles Dickens' "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" playing at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA. through December 23, 2023. Photo Courtesy Hanover Theatre)
Additional notable performances include Daniel Reardon as Scrooge's undaunted, cheerful nephew, “Fred,” Steve Gagliastro as a "Charitable Gentleman," the ebullient "Mr. Fezziwig" (with the equally buoyant Annie Kerins as “Mrs. Fezziwig”), Aidan Levinson as “Young Ebenezer” and Channing Rion as “Belle.”
Recommended for ALL ages. However, repeating (in what has become an "annual caution"):
Some may find the scenes with "Marley's" plummeting ghostly chains and the “Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come” disturbing if not downright scary.
Therefore, young children should make sure to hold onto their parents tightly - just to ensure their parents remain calm.
The annual production of the Hanover Theatre's heartwarming and festive "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" continues through December 23rd.
BUY TICKETS
Please contact the box office at 877-571-SHOW (7469) for more information.
Approximately two hours with one intermission
Kevin T. Baldwin is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA)
@MetrmagReviews
@Theatre_Critics
ABOUT THE SHOW
Adapted by the president and CEO Troy Siebels and featuring the Mighty Wurlitzer Organ, the annual production returns to the main stage with timeless music, lavish costumes, and spine-tingling special effects.
New and returning cast members tell the tale of curmudgeonly miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, who is visited by the Spirits of Christmases Past, Present and Yet To Come.
The show is refined and revised each year to feature more magic than ever before, with an array of spectacles from smoke and fog to spectacular flying stunts.
Approximately two hours, 15 minutes with one intermission
BUY TICKETS
Please contact the box office at 877-571-SHOW (7469) for more information.
ABOUT HANOVER THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Worcester Center for Performing Arts is a registered not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization, which owns and operates The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
HANOVER THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
2 Southbridge Street
Worcester, MA. 01608
877-571-SHOW (7469)
