Dickensblog

Jefferson Mays's 'Christmas Carol' comes to Broadway

Got another teaser trailer for you today! This one is for Jefferson Mays's one-man version of A Christmas Carol, which opens at Broadway's Nederlander Theater on November 8. Go here for tickets! 

R.I.P., David Warner

The British actor, who played Bob Cratchit in the 1984 A Christmas Carol and Sampson Brass in the 1975 musical film Mr. Quilp, passed away July 24 at age 80. (Thanks to Josh Sharpe for the tip.)

Cast named for animated 'Christmas Carol'

Oliva Colman is super into Dickens these days -- along with playing Miss Havisham, she's also playing the Ghost of Christmas Past! Other cast members of the new Netflix animated film include Luke Evans as Scrooge, Jonathan Pryce as Jacob Marley, and Johnny Flynn as Bob Cratchit. See the full list (including some never-before-heard-of characters!) over at Flickering Myth.

A new Dickens/Bricusse collaboration

On its way to Netflix (no date announced yet) is a new European animated version of ... wait for it ... A Christmas Carol! I know, you're stunned. But this one has an interesting twist -- the songs were written by the late Leslie Bricusse, who, as you may remember, c0-wrote the songs for the 1970 film Scrooge. So I'm sure there will be some intriguing comparisons to make between his vision for the story from more than 50 years ago, and his more recent vision. And it will be nice to have one last set of songs from him.

'Loved, revered, and honoured'

A thought for the 152nd anniversary of Charles Dickens's death:

"Oh cold, cold, rigid, dreadful Death, set up thine altar here, and dress it with such terrors as thou hast at thy command: for this is thy dominion. But of the loved, revered, and honoured head, thou canst not turn one hair to thy dread purposes, or make one feature odious. It is not that the hand is heavy and will fall down when released; it is not that the heart and pulse are still; but that the hand was open, generous, and true; the heart brave, warm, and tender; and the pulse a man’s. Strike, Shadow, strike. And see his good deeds springing from the wound, to sow the world with life immortal!"

--A Christmas Carol, Stave IV

Snippets of 'Spirited'

Thanks to the Frock Flicks blog for sharing some social media clips and photos from the filming of Spirited, the upcoming Christmas Carol adaptation with Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell. And thanks to Rachel McMillan for the tip!

Olivia Colman to star in BBC 'Great Expectations'

As promised, the team behind the BBC/FX A Christmas Carol are working on their next Dickens project, a six-part adaptation of Great Expectations. Oscar winner Olivia Colman is the latest actress to tackle the role of Miss Havisham, with Fionn Whitehead (Dunkirk) playing Pip. Click here for more casting news.

As one who wasn't a big fan of Steven Knight & company's Christmas Carol, I just hope that they manage to make this one a little less dour!

(Thanks to Karen Swallow Prior for the tip.)

Keeping Christmas all the year

Even though it's no longer the Christmas season, my friend Hannah Long has some inspiring thoughts to share about why "'A Christmas Carol' offers a road map for change far more effectively than any New Year’s Eve film could." 

Stream the Goodman's 'A Christmas Carol'

The bad news is, Chicago's Goodman Theatre was forced to end its annual run of A Christmas Carol early because of COVID-19. The good news is, they've made it available to stream online through January 14! Go here to purchase a $25 ticket. 

Finding our role in 'A Christmas Carol'

Merry Christmas! This year, I thought I'd share this piece by actress Jennifer Vosters on her time playing the Ghost of Christmas Present both before and during the pandemic, and what it has meant to her. A sample:

"While not overtly religious, A Christmas Carol draws on Gospel themes: the dangers of greed, the blessings of community, the obligation for generosity, the need for redemption. It reminds us how easy it is to find ourselves fettered like Scrooge and Marley: cloistered in a mindset of scarcity, hoarding our resources, ignoring our neighbors, shunning vulnerability and connection, blaming others for problems we have the power to fix.

"But we can cast ourselves in a different role. We can be Present, pointing out the potential of every moment, every day. We can be Fred, who never gives up his optimism and never gives up on his uncle. Or better yet, we can be Scrooge on Christmas morning, who claims his chance at a better version of himself, who acknowledges his sins and immediately does the work to make amends, who gives freely and laughs readily and forges community wherever he goes."