Santa Monica Rep presents an all-new highly theatrical production of Charles Dickens’ classic holiday ghost story, A Christmas Carol, directed by Jen Bloom. The production will run December 1 through 18, with an opening night performance on December 2. Following each performance, continue the celebration with the cast of A Christmas Carol for caroling and egg nog. 
Eric Bloom, Artistic Director of Santa Monica rep said, “This production came together in a very natural way. During this summer, we had an extremely successful reading series at The Edye at The Broad Stage, including John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath and Wendy Wasserstein’s The Heidi Chronicles. Both of those had an element of communal audience participation that invigorated audiences and our company and we wanted to do a full production wherein the audience could come together in a joyful way. I think A Christmas Carol is the perfect play to promote that sense of community and jubilation.”
The most featured design element features the use of shadows and shadow puppetry, bringing an unusual look to the production, as well as a use of a centuries old theatrical technique, enhancing the sense of a Greek chorus created by the ensemble.
Jen Bloom, director and co-founder of Santa Monica Rep added, “I’m interested in how and why people change. And no one changes more than Scrooge. What does it take? How much must he be shaken to his core before he sees the light. We wanted to embrace the dark qualities of Dickens’ work which actually is what makes it so much fun…those bone-chilling ghost encounters and the disorienting quality of Scrooge’s experience – really, just how often do you get to visit your own grave? These elements are heightened by the use of shadows in our production.”
Jen Bloom continued, “A Christmas Carol is a classic because it speaks to how hard it is to make a real transformation in your life. Scrooge is a man who used to be good but slowly turned to greed. It takes an intervention from spirits and humans alike to bring him back to goodness. That transformation, at the hands of a community, is the heart of this story, and what has made this story among the most popular for all ages for centuries.”
Tickets are available now by visiting santamonicarep.org. Tickets can also be purchased in-person at the Miles Playhouse beginning 90 minutes prior to show time. A portion of all ticket sales will be donated to local charities supporting the homeless. Miles Playhouse is located at 1130 Lincoln Blvd. in Christine Emerson Reed Park, Santa Monica CA 90403. This production is made possible in part with support from The Broad Stage.
Troy Dunn stars as Scrooge and Arlo Petty makes his professional stage debut as Tiny Tim. The ensemble also includes Yael Berkovich, Eric Bloom, Ewan Chung, Sara Mayer, Mike Niedzwiecki, Bart Petty, Julianna Robinson, Barbara Urich and Tanya White.
The production team is Jen Bloom (Director), Leslie K. Gray (Scenic and Shadow Puppetry Design), Brandon Baruch (Lighting Design), Maddie Keller (Costumer Design), Dave McKeever (Sound Design), John Mulhern (Associate Producer/Technical Director), Sarah Gurfield (Co-Producer) and Adrienne Johnson-Lister (Production Stage Manager).
