Description:
The traditional Christmas classic novel by Charles Dickens adapted for the stage by award-winning playwright Gary Owen.
Tucked up in his old, decaying house on a cold Christmas Eve, lonely, curmudgeonly Scrooge hears the rattle of chains and strange wailing noises: it's the ghost of his old business partner, Marley, come to warn Scrooge that if he doesn't change his ways, he will suffer a terrible fate. Whilst Scrooge meets the three Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, he must learn to embrace the true spirit of Christmas before it's too late. Gary Owen's adaptation translates the novel's narrative fluently and portrays the Dickensian caricatures with flair and fun but not crudeness. Whilst translating the novel for the stage, he also refreshes the 1843 morality tale of ghosts, poverty, avarice and the redemptive power of compassion for a 21st century audience.Brief description: Gary Owen is the winner of the George Devine, Meyer Whitworth and Pearson Best Play Awards. His other plays include Crazy Gary's Mobile Disco, The Shadow of a Boy, The Drowned World, Mrs Reynolds and the Ruffian and Love Steals Us From Loneliness. With Helen Raynor he was writer and creator of the BBC Wales series Baker Boys. His most recent theatre work includes Perfect Match for Watford Palace Theatre, where he is a creative associate, and Ring Ring, a new version of La Ronde for the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. In June 2015 he made his Royal Court debut with Violence and Son, directed by Hamish Pirie. Iphigenia in Splott for Sherman Cymru won Best New Play at the UK Theatre Awards 2015.
Review Quotes: "An impressive adaptation for our times... This is a rousing family show, with belly laughs and cheering songs, yet it also presents the dark side of Dickens's tale with tremendous boldness...There are lots of contemporary references and echoes...but the production, which is boisterous and thoughtful in equal measure, retains a Victorian sternness....Hugely likable show is confident enough to work with that, and meld it with our world." --The Guardian