When Tyler Yee was first cast in Loyola’s rendition of the holiday classic “A Christmas Carol,” he had no idea of the intensity he would find in the adapted version.
“I am so glad that I was chosen for this because Artemis’s directing has made me look at acting in a completely different way,” said Yee, a theater junior.
A modern stage version of the Charles Dickens novel “A Christmas Carol,” adapted by Neil Bartlett, will be performed by beginning Nov. 6 in Marquette Theater.
“It carries through the Victorian Gothic in a riveting way that is grounded, providing an underpinning of the integrity of the play and the characters,” says Director Artemis Preeshl.
Theatre Complicite, a theatre company based in London inspired Preeshl’s methods for this play, which uses a very physical approach to directing characters’ presences.
“I want every character to be instantly self-introduced within three seconds of their entrance to the stage, and the actors must do that by using their whole bodies as masks,” Preeshl said.
Along with the physical acting, the costumes in the play are very modern. Though the play is set in the Victorian Gothic era, the ghosts seem to come from the future. Costume Director Kellie Greng’s designs are riddled with technology.
The wild costumes are meant to enhance the theme of society’s increasing dependence on technology and how that creates a division between people and results in isolation.
Even the sets, which were built by Geoffrey Hall, assistant professor of theater, add to this with an “Escher-like jungle gym” edge.
The clashing eras add to the original story’s spiritual approach. Though not a specifically Christian play, Preeshl described, “Christ’s redemption is almost a parent for Scrooge, but it is a message the is found in all religions. The play takes place during Loyola Week, and it is a great time, and never to late to open up and give to others, which is the whole point of the play.”
The play also attempts to follow Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, going from the self to the heart.
“Scrooge really just wants to be a good person in the end, so it has been great and really related to me. It’s creepy almost, but that’s helped with the character development,” said theater junior Paul Schwartz, who plays the main character.
The play has helped Schwartz, a transfer student from Spring Hill University, to adjust very quickly to Loyola and believes he has already learned so much more in two months at Loyola than his first three years at Spring Hill, he said.
To add to the connections and disconnections between characters (affected by technology) is the fact that there are nine cast members, but almost everyone plays multiple characters. Britney Chandler has the most roles, playing 12 characters.
“Each actor plays a set of characters that are all grouped together in a specific archetypal role,” said James McBride, theater sophomore.
“I play both the Ghost of Present and the Ghost of Future, and both show Scrooge very important thing,” said David Hanks, theater communications junior.
The play will run in Marquette Theatre on Nov. 6, 7, 12, 13 and 14 at 7 p.m., and on Nov 8 at 2 p.m.
Garrett Cleland can be reached at [email protected]
BOX:
Tickets for the play will be $12 for general admission and $8 for Loyola students, faculty and staff.
Tickets can be purchased by calling the Loyola Box Office at (504) 865-2074, or at www.montage.loyno.edu, and they will also be available at the door starting 30 minutes before the show until tickets sell out.
The plays Nov. 8 and 12 performances will be special Second Harvest Donation Days as Loyola works with Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana.
On these days, ticket buyers will receive a $2 discount if they bring a canned food to donate to Second Harvest, and Loyola will then donate another $2 dollars to Second Harvest as well.
