Synopsis

The story told by Charles Dickens needs no long-winded explanation - it's probably one of the best known Christmas stories in existence.

This musical version is true to the Dickensian original - it sets out the miserly nature of Ebenzer Scrooge, recounts the reluctant journeys of revelation he takes with the three Spirit's, and shows him at the end as a rehabilitated character, ready to take his place at the Christmas dinner table.

Surrounding Ebenezer is the large cast of the Cratchit family, the Scrooge family and friends, the Fezziwig family and employees, and various local residents and people from his past and future.

Musically, it has six songs with some lovely solos for Scrooge and Tiny Tim (a real tear-jerker) and it has a lot of chorus work. The most complex musical item is the number 'The Minister's Cat'.

This song is a ‘fun’ song, usually called, in musical theatre tradition, a list song. The skill lies in getting it right and singing it as fast as possible. The song is written in such a way that each character at Fred Scrooge’s party (or perhaps each pair or threesome) sings a line each, and each line is illustrated by a printed card revealed for the audience to see at the very moment that a particular word is sung. Twenty-six cards have A, B, C, etc on them, with the ‘A’ card being revealed on the word ‘Able’. Once the song has been sung once, Topper (one of the guests) invites everyone to try again and sing it faster still. They do so, and with careful choreography they gradually form a line along the front of the stage (rather than sitting or standing in party mode). The players pretend to get mixed up; changing places continually (although always revealing the correct card at the right moment).

By the time they get to the end of the song the audience believe they are hopelessly confused. But on the final word of the final line they all show their alphabet cards to the audience, but they show the reverse of them on which are yet another set of letters revealing the title of the song - THE MINISTER’S CAT! (Thus proving that the cast knew what they were doing all along!) It usually results in an explosion of applause.

Ideal for groups that produce a Christmas fund-raiser in between their main shows, or perhaps in the absence of, or maybe taking the place of a panto as an alternative piece of traditional Christmas theatre.

It has a relatively short running time: Act 1, 55mins; Act 2, 45 mins

Characters

Songs

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