Producer Eleanor Lloyd and Nottingham Playhouse have announced that a brand-new adaptation of Dickens’ classic Christmas tale written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Adam Penford will premiere at the Playhouse, prior to a Christmas run at London’s Alexandra Palace.
A Christmas Carol will run at Nottingham Playhouse from Friday 30th October 2020, to Saturday 14th November 2020 before previewing at Alexandra Palace from November 27th. The production will have a press night at Alexandra Palace on December 3rd and play until January 10th 2021.
Following his acclaimed performance as the king in Nottingham Playhouse’s award-winning production of The Madness of George III in 2018, also directed by Adam Penford, Mark Gatiss (Dracula, The League of Gentlemen, Doctor Who) leads an ensemble cast, in his own retelling of Dickens’ classic winter ghost story, filled with Dickensian, spine-tingling special effects. Prepare to be frightened and delighted in equal measure as you enter the supernatural Victorian world of A Christmas Carol.
Mark Gatiss says – “A Christmas Carol’ has been absolutely my favourite story since I was, well, tiny. It’s an astonishingly powerful tale of life, love, loss and redemption and remains supremely relevant. But at its heart it is a ghost story and that will be at the core of my new version. A scary, thrilling, joyous adventure to get the blood piping on a freezing winter’s night. A Victorian phantasmagoria!”
It’s a cold Christmas Eve and mean-spirited miser Ebenezer Scrooge has an unexpected visit from the spirit of his former business partner Jacob Marley. Bound in chains as punishment for a lifetime of greed, the unearthly figure explains it isn’t too late for Scrooge to change his miserly ways in order to escape the same fate, but first he’ll have to face three more eerie encounters…
The production will open first at Nottingham Playhouse directed by its Artistic Director Adam Penford. Nottingham Playhouse is dedicated to making bold and thrilling world-class theatre in the heart of Nottingham and was named Regional Theatre of the Year in The Stage Awards 2019.
Over Christmas the production will transfer to Alexandra Palace. Originally built in 1875 the Alexandra Palace Theatre has been reawakened and its Victorian features have been restored, making it the perfect backdrop to experience this landmark production.
Further casting will be announced in due course and tickets for both Nottingham and London are on sale to the general public from February 17th.
