The Old Vic’s production of A Christmas Carol is fun, relevant and inspiring, and is the perfect thing to get you in the festive spirit, writes Dean Walker,.
Adaptations of A Christmas Carol are as much as a part of the furniture at Christmas as the stockings above the fireplace, and although the story is as relevant as ever, it is difficult to keep it fresh.
But that is exactly what director Matthew Warchus has done with Jack Thorne’s version of A Christmas Carol at The Old Vic theatre in London starring Christopher Eccleston as the iconic Scrooge.
Christopher Eccleston has a lot to do here. He is on stage for practically the entire time, and has to run the gamut of emotions, from anger to joy, from annoyed to ashamed and arrogant to remorseful all within a tight 90 minutes – even playing Scrooge as a young man convincingly at times. He plays a Scrooge who at the beginning seems irredeemable and by the end is hopeful and playful.
Although with less play, the supporting cast is also stellar. Before the show, they zip around the audience, handing out satsumas and mince pies, while some actors play suitably Christmassy music on stage on the strings.
In fact, it is impossible to leave this show without feeling the Christmas spirit. The beginning, middle and end of the play is bookmarked by the actors giving a performance of a different Christmas carol played on bells. It is as impressive as it is festive.
The set design is effectively simple, with The Old Vic having a Shakespearean-style circular stage. Thankfully, every angle is accounted for, and you never feel like something is blocked from your view.
Everyone knows how the story of A Christmas Carol ends, so everything feels like it is perfectly building towards the triumphant finale of Scrooge’s inevitable redemption. In fact, throughout the play, the elements of Scrooge’s past seem more specific and more intertwined as new elements are added, meaning it is a lot easier to combine these moments into an excellently overindulgent ending.
Once the show is over, Eccleston addresses the audience directly, asking them all to consider A Christmas Carol how Dickens intended it – a reminder to be more generous. On your way out, stewards are standing with buckets for City Harvest – a London-based charity for the those under the poverty line. After seeing Scrooge becoming much more generous, it is impossible not to feel the same, especially when you’re given such a practical way to give on the way home.
If you don’t feel more festive and generous after watching A Christmas Carol, then you must be a Scrooge. Eccleston is transformative, the supporting cast are excellent, and the staging and the music perfectly encourage everything else along.
