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A Christmas Carol
Written by Charles Dickens; adaptation by Dave Armstrong
Directed by Jennifer Ward-Lealand
for the Auckland Theatre Company at Skycity Theatre
11 November-12 December 2004
 

 




Scrooge with the Cratchit family
Jackie Clark, Bruce Hopkins, Kate-Louise Elliot, Edward
Giffney, Mark Hadlow, Jonny Hair, Morgan Reese Fairhead
(photo: Andrew Malmo; see additional photos at jenniferwardlealand.com)


 

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Director's Notes: On December 17, 1853, in the cavernous Birmingham Town Hall, Charles Dickens read A Christmas Carol to an audience of two thousand people who listened intently for three whole hours and occasionally burst into rapturous applause.

There will always be a place for stories that lift our spirits, and the perfect time for A Christmas Carol will always be the magical season of Christmas. Dave's adaptation makes the story wonderfully accessible to us all, while preserving the Master's shrewd characterisations, intricate plots, social commentary and most of all his keen eye for human eccentricities.

I like to think that if Dickens were alive and in Auckland today, this is how he would have written A Christmas Carol. Well, more or less!

-Jennifer Ward-Lealand

The Cast
Mark Hadlow (Scrooge)
Jackie Clark (Lorraine Cratchit)
Bruce Hopkins (Bob Cratchit)
Edward Giffney (Tiny Tim)
Jonny Hair (Pete Cratchit)
Morgan Reese Fairhead (Belinda Cratchit)
Cameron Rhodes (Marley)
Paul Barrett (Narrator)
Hori Ahipene (Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future)
Kate-Louise Elliot (Deirdre)

The Crew
John Verryt (Designer)
David Eversfield (Lighting Designer)
Grant Winterburn (Musical Director)

Year-End Kudos, from the New Zealand Herald, 15 December 2004:

"Dave Armstrong's adaptation of A Christmas Carol provides a fitting end to the year by showing it is possible to enjoy the festive season without wallowing in sentimentality or drowning in commercialism.

Dickens' simple tale has a density that can support an enormous variety of interpretations and Armstrong was able to modernise the story without diluting the potency of the original.

Director Jennifer Ward-Lealand delivered an exuberant production that captures the chaotic multicultural diversity of Auckland City."


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 NZ Herald preview article NZ Herald review



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