Birmingham Repertory Theatre – until 5th January 2025
Reviewed by Emma Millward
5*****
The festive season is upon us, and Birmingham Rep is staging a traditional Dickensian show as its annual Christmas production this year. Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol, or to give its full original title, ‘A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being A Ghost Story of Christmas’ was first published in December 1843. Adapted for the stage by Writer Mark Gatiss and directed by Adam Penford., the show first premiered at Nottingham Playhouse in 2021, before transferring to the Alexandra Palace in London.
As the audience enters the auditorium, the first thing that greets them is the eerie set, dimly lit by an ominous blue light casting a shadow over the tall desks and cabinets of Scrooge and Marley’s Accountants. We meet Ebenezer Scrooge (Matthew Cottle) and Jacob Marley (Rufus Hound), mean-spirited Accountants who berate their Clerk, Bob Cratchit (Oscar Batterham), for daring to request not to work on Christmas Day. As Scrooge and Marley plot how much to cut Cratchit’s wages, Marley dies suddenly. Seven years later, Scrooge is just as mean and still hates Christmas. His Nephew Fred (Lance West) tries unsuccessfully to encourage Scrooge to join his family for Christmas lunch. The ghostly form of Jacob Marley appears, wrapped in heavy chains. He tells Scrooge it is time to change his ways before it is too late. Scrooge can expect to be visited by three spirits who may help him change his fate.
The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future are as well-known as the character of Scrooge. The audience’s anticipation of their appearance could be felt. The Ghost of Christmas Past (Grace Hogg-Robinson) is a pale-skinned girl with slightly creepy movements. She takes Scrooge back to his childhood and his romance with Belle (Kalifa Taylor). The Ghost of Christmas Present (Mark Theodore) amused the crowd with his ‘magic dust’ sprinkling, which gave Christmas cheer to whoever it touched. He takes Scrooge to see Bob Cratchit and Mrs Cratchit (Rebecca Trehearn) as they celebrate Christmas with their children, where he hears Mrs Cratchit’s scathing comments about Scrooge’s behaviour. Ghost of Christmas Future was suitably chilling; I will not spoil who turns out to be under those dark robes. The scenes of Scrooge’s realisation of the error of his ways are both thought-provoking and touching. Scrooge discovers what happens to Tiny Tim (Ryan Weston) and, ultimately, his own potential destiny. Matthew Cottle excelled in these scenes and showed his comedic abilities when Scrooge nervously tried to be kind to a confused Bob Cratchit.
Paul Wills’ set and costume designs range from minimal for the Cratchit house to total opulence for the Yuletide Ball sequences. Phillip Gladwell’s lighting and Nina Dunn’s video design work well together and perfectly set the spooky scene. Writer Mark Gatiss’s respect for the original book is apparent throughout, especially in the authentic Dickensian language used by characters such as the Narrator (Geoffrey Beevers) and Ghost of Christmas Past. It is a ghost story, but the special effects and jump scares don’t overpower the storyline. They add to it as you are almost on the edge of your seat, waiting for them to occur.
The ensemble features a relatively small cast of 19 actors, but it feels like many more performers, as the actors take dual roles throughout the production. Special mention must be given to the child actors (Takunda Khumalo, Sophie John, River Mahjouri, Corrina Onyiukah, Logan Meers and Orla Rae Wilson), who all have a lot of stage time as many different characters. The stand-out performance, unsurprisingly, was Matthew Cottle as Scrooge. He perfectly captures the changing character of Scrooge from a detestable grump to almost childlike naivety by the end of the show.
All in all, it’s the perfect show to watch this Christmas. It’s heartwarming, visually stunning and spooky. It is a tremendous take on a traditional Christmas story.