It’s that time of year again, when Marley’s chains fall from the attic. a man of Jefferson Mays Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (Nederlander Theatre, through January 1) there are a total of 50 scary characters and the story as you know—the melting of Ebenezer Scroogehis cold, cold heart—speaks fluently by him. Christmas Songs It may be short, but it’s all too familiar and well known—everyone has a favorite version (sorry Alastair Sim, that’s the Muppets Christmas Carol for me)—that finding a new way to present and tell about it has been a perennial challenge.
Play both narrator and all characters was no small feat—reflected by the standing ovation given to Mays on the night the critic attended. But the magic of this piece, adapted by Mays, Susan Lyons and directed by Michael Arden, relies heavily on Laffrey’s superb stage design, which is a chaos of trickery and surprise, light lighting by Ben Stanton and sound design by Joshua D. Reid.
This critic isn’t going to ruin what’s easily the best New York stage shock of the year, but it happens right at the beginning of the show. Christmas Songs—and deliciously spooked our audience. Director Arden delights in the many visually stunning moments he can put into a 90-minute show.
These start with Mays lighting a dark stage with candles, all the way up to the amazing scene changes on the stage itself — and the amazing “how did they do that?” moment. These include scene changes — including party scenes and a lavishly decorated house — and Mays’ own stage presence (one minute there, and the next there!). Danny Gardner as “Ghost” provides a host of other jaw-dropping effects. In this production, the projections feel too modern and spacious, and at the same time give off the counterintuitive ghostly feel that the design and lighting systems strive to achieve.
Indeed, these visual tricks are so dramatic that the story gets in the way. There’s a problem with knowing it, and despite Mays’ best efforts, finding a new way to say it, or tapping into a bunch of characters already all too familiar in the popular consciousness.
In places, the story dragged, and both me and the theater lost track of the story or the voice—again, no fault of Mays. 50 characters is a lot; and he’s such an enthusiastic manager that you’ll still find your throat choking as the story of Tiny Tim unfolds before your eyes. And you will also feel the joy when Scrooge wakes up from the panic on Christmas morning, full of joy, ready to make amends. Again, the light and stage work at this point is its own star—the star of the show, indeed.
