Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL, Alexandra Palace Theatre
Photo credit: Manuel Harlan
Closed to the public for over 80 years, the newly-restored Alexandra Palace still has the ghosts of performances past etched into its distressed facades, from which audiences can draw a very palpable sense of the building’s history. This cracked and cavernous space, perfectly imperfect, is a far cry from the pristine cookie-cutter venues of the West End.
This is the perfect space to host Mark Gatiss’s ghostly new adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, created and co-produced by Nottingham Playhouse. Thus far in my life I, personally, have managed to avoid the seasonal glut of Dickens’ productions that clog up the theatres around this time of year, preferring instead to indulge in my annual viewing of the 1992 classic The Muppet Christmas Carol.
In a Q&A featured in the production programme, Gatiss states that he wanted to stress the story’s ‘ghostly credentials’, which he certainly does. There is no need, really, for the sub-heading tacked onto the traditional title of this production – the ghosts in Gatiss’s adaptation, confidently directed by Adam Penford, speak for themselves, conjured by an excitingly varied array of effects including projections, puppetry, costumes, physical theatre, and some seemingly independently moving props…
Gatiss himself appears in various roles throughout this production, including the eerie, chain-laden Jacob Marley. In fact, many of the cast multi-role in the various Christmas timelines. The Christmas Carol ensemble are incredibly strong, changing roles, moving sets, transitioning between song and dance routines with elegant, ethereal fluidity.
Nicholas Farrell commands the stage as Scrooge. From the beginning of the play, the dynamic between the business partners makes it clear that Marley is the ringleader and instigator of penny-pinching cruelty, which leaves plenty of room for Scrooge’s redemption. Farrell’s portrayal of Scrooge is funny and poignant, and never descended into caricature.
There is an impressive, almost-ten strong design team behind Gatiss’ Carol - including illusion and puppet designers – which is certainly a worthwhile investment. The stage and production design is gorgeous, comprised mostly of precipitously towering bankers boxes which double as the offices of Scrooge and Marley, and the winding rat runs of London’s streets.
This production has all the elements of a cosy traditional Victorian Christmas. You can tell that Gatiss has spent a long time with this story – this is an affectionate adaptation, faithful to the traditional story that audiences know and love, and breathing a gloriously chilly, wintery, festive spirit into it.
This is a seasonal treat not to be missed – a once-in-a-lifetime production that ticks every box for perfect festive entertainment. Bravo!
***** Five stars
Reviewed by: Livvy Perrett
A Christmas Carol runs at Alexandra Palace Theatre until 9 January 2022, with tickets available here.