“A Christmas Carol" at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse -- November 11 through December 29.
Wednesday, November 11, through Tuesday, December 29
Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse, 1828 Third Avenue, Rock Island IL
With their beloved musical adaptation a perennial Madison Square Garden event from the show's 1994 debut through 2003, Tony Award winners Lynn Ahrens' and Alan Menken's A Christmas Carol will put the "hum" in "Humbug!" from November 11 through December 29, this delightful holiday fable the first production in the 50th-anniversary season at Rock Island's venerated Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse.
The Broadway adaptation of Charles Dickens’ 1843 festive novella, A Christmas Carol tells the tale of the curmudgeonly Ebenezer Scrooge. A prosperous businessman, he believes that personal wealth and heartless financial tactics are much more valuable than the friendship, happiness, and comfort of those around him. He treats his employee, Bob Cratchit, and his family with the same disdain and coldness that he shows everyone else. Scrooge’s miserable nature comes to a crescendo during the Christmas period: ”Bah! Humbug!” However, this Christmas, he is forced to come face to face with his selfish ways when he is confronted by three ghosts on Christmas Eve: the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas Future. In the course of one night, Scrooge is forced to recognize his faults and gains the chance to make amends.
Its score by The Little Mermaid's Menken and lyrics and book by Ragtime's Lynn Ahrens, Circa '21's A Christmas Carol is being directed by Georgia Kleier, who helmed her first production for the venue this past summer with the dinner theatre's acclaimed revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Area favorite Ron May serves as music director, with additional members of Kleier's creative team including: choreographer and assistant artistic director Ashley Becher; stage manager and props designer Kendall McKasson; production manager Jeremy Littlejohn; technical director Rich Baker; scenic designer and artist Becky Meissen; costume designer Jeanne Nugent; lighting designer Heather Hauskins; audio engineer Dylan Dutro; assistant stage manager, deck manager, and track master Emmett Boedeker; and producer and Circa '21 owner Dennis Hitchcock.
Portraying Ebenezer Scrooge is the venue's eternally popular Brad Hauskins, who began working at Circa '21 as a member of the performing wait staff of Bootleggers in 1987 and has appeared in more than 100 mainstage productions since, including Fiddler on the Roof, Shear Madness, Grumpy Old Men: The Musical, and The Music Man. Another longtime familiar performer, Bobby Becher portrays the much maligned Bob Cratchit, with the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future respectively played by Zamar Malik Griffin, John Payonk, and Emma Kops. Also featured among A Christmas Carol's gifted ensemble: Peyton Beck; Elise Cameron; Adam Cerny; Kyle DeFauw; Marian Driscoll; Kelsey Sylvia Flowers; Kat Gold; Cassidy Hall; Charlee Hankner; Jax Huntley; Jeremy Littlejohn; Kiera Lynn; Bear Manescalchi; Nox McCarthy; Tate Milton; Maggie Sierra; Tristan Layne Tapscott; Griffin Wilson; Rachel Winter; Tariq Woods; Fulton Young; and ensemble swing performers Lauren Carroll and Topher Elliott.
A Christmas Carol will be performed in Rock Island from November 11 through December 29, and in addition to the show's 7:30 p.m. public previews on November 11 and 12, performances will be held on Fridays, Saturdays, and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 5:30 p.m.; and Wednesday afternoons at 1:15 p.m. A schedule closing-day performance is also scheduled for Tuesday, December 29. All shows will be preceded by plated meals and pre-show entertainment by the theatre's performing wait staff of Circa '21 Bootleggers, and more information and tickets are available by calling (309)786-7733 extension 2 and visiting Circa21.com.
