A Christmas Carol at HCT 2020

With HCT's new guidelines for socially distanced seating (which I actually applaud), I didn't think that I would be able to see A Christmas Carol this year. Even though I have seen it more times than I can count, the thought of missing out on yet another Christmas tradition made me a bit sad. Then HCT released a few tickets last weekend and I quickly grabbed one for an early show yesterday afternoon! I enjoyed it so much, probably more than I ever have before! HCT's production is a lovely adaptation of the well-known classic by Charles Dickens about the reclamation of Ebeneezer Scrooge (David Weeks) by the Ghosts of Christmas Past (Jackie Spendlove), Present (Jonathan Fifield), and Future (Spencer Hohl). What I love most about HCT's production is the addition of Christmas music in between every scene by an octet (Brett Myers, Taylor J. Smith, Michael Von Forell, Josh Shimizu, Emily Hawkes, Mindi Hansen, Emily Leishman Roh, and Erin Camp Worland) and in certain party scenes by the characters. I love Christmas music so much and I think the addition really helps add to the mood. My favorite song by the octet is "What Child is This?" and I also really love "Bring a Torch Jeanette, Isabella" during the Fezziwig's party (it was my favorite song to sing when I was in the choir in college) and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" during Fred's party. This year they added a violin (Katie Frandsen) to the musical numbers and I loved it! Because I've seen this production so many times I always anticipate seeing the same actors return to the same role year after year but this year there were quite a few new faces!  I particularly loved Elijah Thomas as Charles Dickens/Fred because his performance of the opening prologue (it seems like it was expanded this year) gave me goosebumps, Anthony LeRoy Lovato as Bob Cratchit because he is so tender after the death of Tiny Tim, and Jonathan Fifeld as the Ghost of Christmas Present because he is jolly but also a little bit stern. Of course the young actor playing Tiny Tim (Payson Inkley) is absolutely adorable and he really works it when he says his iconic line at the end of the show. The elaborate Victorian sets on the turntable (I love the rag and bottle shop) and the opulent costumes effectively transport the audience back to London in the 1800s but, because I was sitting on the side in the back of the theatre, I sometimes had a hard time seeing all of the projections and I missed the climactic moment when the Ghost of Christmas Future shows Scrooge his name on the tombstone. It mattered not because this show is full of so much Christmas cheer that you can't help leaving the theatre with a smile on your face and a vow to keep Christmas in your heart all year long! I highly recommend getting a ticket and, last I heard, there are still some available for a few shows (go here)