I saw A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic starring Stephen Tompkinson as Scrooge.
A Christmas Carol is the heartwarming tale of about Scrooge. I’m sure you’ll know what its about! It is adapted by Jack Thorne and Directed by Matthew Warchus.
I really enjoyed this adaptation because this was the time where I properly understood the story. It got straight into the ghosts because most versions they drag the first section out a bit without the ghosts but in this version after some lovely bell ringing you were thrust into the story. I really enjoyed the ghosts because they were African Women wearing gorgeous costumes by Rob Howell. This really gave the story more grounding and realism. Stephen Tompkinson was an outstanding scrooge and really gave an incredible performance! His character arc was wonderfully portrayed and he had a huge stage presence about him.
There were known Christmas Carols in this version and music that underscored the whole way through which gave more emotion and heart to the scene. The tight band of 4 sounded brilliant. The surround sound also really immersed you into the production.
I really liked the design of this show. It was a fully immersive in the round space where the story was told in a really special way. Mince pies were handed out to the audience and characters in certain scenes would come to the audiences levels and deliver their lines. The stage was in the middle with walkways into the audience. 4 wooden doors came though the ground which surprised me a lot because the set looked very bare and simple. Blocks were taken out of the stage floor to make different furniture. I also really enjoyed the old lanterns floating. They did some clever effects with it. It became a character in its self in a a way!
The whole cast was brilliantly cast in the show and they perfectly fitted their characters. In the interval I felt really emotional and drained a bit which didn’t think I would be, but it is quite emotional. The story is very powerful and everyone can learn from it.
Also at the end they had snow and fabric tubes that went from the upper circle to the stage and were sliding fruit down it! It felt like you were really at the banquet and you felt scrooge’s happiness and change. This piece was beautifully directed so that no side was missing out on the action and I just thought the whole piece was wonderful start to finish!
What did you think of it? Feel free to comment or message me on Instagram @unofficialtheatre !
Thanks For Reading!
Eugene
Unofficial Theatre 