Written by orange• December 5, 2022• 5:47 pm• Musical, Review, Rose Center Theatre, Theater, Uncategorized, Westminster

Rose Center Theatre presents: A Christmas Carol – Review

Photo Credit: Ryan Salazar

Written by Patrick Chavis

A Christmas Carol is playing now at the Rose Center Theatre on Dec 2 – 4 & 15 – 18. Rose Center Theatre’s production boasts a large cast of spirited dancers and singers with excellent choreography and performances. On the other hand, the extra background effects can be more distracting than necessary in this production.

Story:

A Christmas Carol is the story of Scrooge, the man thinks Christmas is a bunch of Humbug. Way before the Grinch stole Christmas, he was the original Christmas Hater. Scrooge encounters three ghosts – the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas Future. Can Scrooge, the ultimate miser, change his ways in just one night?

A Christmas Carol is a beautifully told morality story. It’s one of those classic tales that stays relevant because it aims at deeply human failings. Greed is one of those failings. You don’t have to live in the 1800s to relate to the message.

Set/Effects:

To amplify the already large set, the show added a bunch of digital projections to correspond with the music and each scene. While some of the projections seem more like a Windows 98 screensaver than something meant for a theatrical performance, the added texture was a nice touch at times.

Unique to the Rose Theatre are the two lifted stages to the left and right of the stage. The production used both to expand and section off certain moments.

Acting/Choreography:

The dance choreography in Mr. Fezziwigs Annual Christmas Ball was lively and fun!

While I’m typically used to seeing a more intimidating Ghost of Christmas Future. This production’s Ghost of Christmas Future, played by Cat Valentine, has a darker Goth dancer aesthetic, and I dig it.

The show has a small orchestra covering the 18 different tunes in the production. The pit was small, but the musicians were tight and were a great addition to the night’s performance.

At the end of the production, look at the back of your playbill and sing along with this playful cast.