'A Christmas Carol' at the Belgrade, Coventry.
"Well, it's seasonal...." a colleague said on learning of one's visit to A Christmas Carol at the Belgrade, Coventry. So it is - and very rightly and properly. Eva Holterman's production begins and ends with carols and snowflakes bringing tidings of comfort and joy.
It is, of necessity, a much truncated version of the Dickens classic, adapted for the stage by John Maxwell; indeed, it plays for only a little more than two hours, with two generous intervals added. But for a predominantly youthful audience, this is perhaps no great disadvantage.
Certainly the cries of delight and astonishment, interspersed with laughter, which greeted the company last night must have been welcome evidence of audience participation. Visually, it is an enchanting production: Brian Currah's permanent set allows a fine flexibility of movement and lighting, against a seasonal background of snow-topped houses and a frosty sky, and with a splendid front curtain.
Two Scrooges
The story of Scrooge's conversion to the meaning and spirit of Christmas is, like all the best stories, well-known and ever-loved: even if, like the writer, one is no Dickensian, it must be part of the Christmas heritage. In this production, let it be recorded, there is even a Tiny Tim whose "God bless us, every one," is at least neither mawkish nor maudlin.
