REVIEW | A Christmas Carol, Crescent Theatre Birmingham
Written by Katie
Disclaimer: gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review.
Traditions have always been a big part of Christmas, and A Christmas Carol is a firm classic of us Brits. While this is a very traditional show with big expectations, local theatre groups have never shied away from giving it a go themselves. Its newest incarnation, Directed by Alan K. Marshall, has returned once again to The Crescent Theatre. First published in 1843, this show tells the story of a miserable, penny-pinching businessman, Ebenezer Scrooge, who goes on a transformative journey after being visited by 4 ghosts.
Phil Rea is an absolute pro as the leading man, Scrooge himself. He navigated Dickens' tricky text with professionalism and confidence, owning the stage and looming over the other characters with perfect tenacity and arrogance. After countless Scrooges have come before him, he does a great job of making it his own, and these days that is no mean feat!
In contrast, James Browning gives us a really sweet Bob Cratchit. There was such sincerity in his acting and the real love he has for his poverty stricken family oozed out of him. It was a joy to watch him playing against the feisty Liz Plumpton as Mrs Cratchit.
There were some unique portrayals and character choices in this show too, including Chris Collette’s zombieish Jacob Marley. Almost a caricature of the famous ghost, it balanced twisted bitterness with a comedic tone; though I might believe this was unintentional.
Finally, Joe Palmer and Niall Higgins shared the role of Fred, and both gave admiral performances with energy and enthusiasm, working well with the other leads to inject merriment into the gloomier scenes.
At the heart of the show, the cast did an extraordinary job working as a team to hop in and out of so many roles. Unfortunately, all but 6 cast members are listed as just the ensemble in the program, so I cannot commend anyone else specifically by name, but there are a few that definitely recognition. First, I loved the strength the actress gave to the typically whimsical and ethereal ghost of Christmas past. I was absolutely hooked on Mr and Mrs Fezziwig’s antics, and I thought the female ensemble in particular really were strong.
There are not many people who don’t know this story, so there is always a certain pressure there to live up to expectations, and I did feel there were some moments that deserved a ‘humbug’ in this show unfortunately. I really enjoyed the use of projection to highlight the ghosts, but they were a little too sporadic to make complete sense and could have been embedded into the performance in a much deeper and more effective way.
While the director chose to stylize the scene changes, it ultimately came down to quite a lot of faffing, which got more and more distracting as the performance progressed, almost turning into its own silent movie at moments in Act 1.
There was also a bit of confusion when it came to the red cloaked figures, but this did rectify itself with the presence of The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come, and eventually made sense.
It had its peaks and troughs, certainly, but overall ended on a winner in Scrooge's redemption, which brought infectious glee to the stage. A community show with some real stars at the helm that left you walking away ready to bring on Christmas day!
This play has thrived off the Communal Joy of the season for decades, and this one is no different. It is a timeless and nostalgic script filled with juxtapositions of spookiness and merriment and this show was kept comfortably traditional. Alight with themes of human empathy, kindness and generosity to others, even in a 21st century world we can still learn an awful lot from this classic text.
A Christmas Carol ends 16th December at the Crescent Theatre.
☆ ☆ ☆
