Harlequin Production’s “A Christmas Carol”

Originally published on social media on December 17th, 2024

Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” will always have a special place in my heart — not only for the ideas of reflection, redemption, and generosity that flow throughout the story. Charles Dickens historically changed society views and celebrates Christmas. With all that said, I am entirely picky about the way “A Christmas Carol” is depicted. I left Harlequin with mixed feelings. Here’s why:

I applaud Ebenezer Scrooge (Terry Edward Moore), the Ghost of Christmas Past (Heather Matthews), Tiny Tim (Larry “LJ” Bevan), and every character played by Teri Lee Thomas. This collection of actors brought their characters to life and maintained the magic of the performance. However there were some parts that were poorly cast and impacted the essence of the story.

I don’t know whether to call this a bad casting choice or staging decision, but the actor who played the older Scrooge stepped in to play himself when he was younger and flirting with Belle, which was uncomfortable and didn’t allow for the necessary chemistry. One of the crucial aspects of “A Christmas Carol” is that he is allowed to watch his younger self and learn. Stepping into his younger self’s shoes made him relive his past, creating an entirely different experience for Scrooge and the audience.

Similar to the critique above, they only have a shadowy screen play the Ghost of Christmas future, and it was not remotely scary nor did Scrooge learn anything from him. This is why they have the ghost of his sister wrap up the lessons and try to convince Scrooge to change. These moments did not give me goosebumps the way Dickens intended for them to. This flaw in their story telling by no means is because they don’t know how to make something scary: they do as their Jacob Marley proved.

There were chills every time thunder clapped, the lighting changed, and Jacob Marley spoke. It was so terrifying that it was INCREDIBLE and my favorite part of the play. I felt they paid a deeper respect to Dickens in this area because it is meant to be scary, and I’ve never been scared by any other movie or stage production in this moment of the story. Bravo!

See it for yourselves, and God bless us every one.