Fifty years is quite a noteworthy accomplishment that The Milwaukee Rep should certainly be proud of. But, you the audience, should be proud of this anniversary too, because without your love and support of A Christmas Carrol, it couldn’t have run all of these years. It has certainly become a family tradition with grandparents and parents sharing it with their grands and children…and I imagine that will continue for years to come.
Over those fifty years, the Rep has presented a number of different adaptations and all of their popular actors have played the important roles at one time or another. I don’t remember how many versions I have attended. It certainly hasn’t been fifty, but I could have if I had If I had been so inclined (yes I am that old). The story is certainly known to us all and the characters remain the same, but no matter how many times you have seen A Christmas Carol, there is always something new to discover or a something that you forgot about to re-excite you or a new bit of action that further illustrates the story. Sit back and take it all in and reach out to your seven year old self as the interlocutors suggest when they are introducing the play and Mr. Charles Dickens, himself!
But this season’s presentation was somewhat in doubt for more than a few moments. In the wake of the Great Flood of 2025, the set for A Christmas Carol and most of the Rep’s off site workshops were destroyed in the flood. Amazingly, the set was rebuilt and re-imagined on the stage of the venerable Pabst Theater. So as in several previous years, we are again graced with Director and Rep Artistic Director Mark Clements’ adaptation and the streets of London appear and disappear as we watch, the spirits broadcast dread and awe as they vex and re-educate Scrooge and we again feel the timeless and timely joy in this story well told. So this season is more that a celebration of the salvation of Scrooge but the resurrection of a cherished season tradition in Milwaukee.
This year feels a little different. There seems to be more joy on stage. The cast seems to be feeling the story more, they seem more invested in their characters than in the past. And I just had more fun this year than I remember from recent seasons. Is that a result of the close call via the floods and the cast realizing what an opportunity they have to bring joy and solace to their audience one more time? I think that might be it…and I mentioned that to Mr. Clements on the way out on Friday night and he seemed to think so as well.
And who is this marvelous cast? Well Matt Daniels is once again Scrooge. And he easily portrays the cranky irascible old miser in the early going…he clearly identifies as that Scrooge. And Daniels just as easily becomes the fearful timid old man in the face of the spirits and the ghost of Marley mid-play. But then he also amazingly transforms into the dancing giddy happy human being the story brings about in Scrooge. Daniels is certainly the Scrooge for this adaptation of Dickens’ story.
And our ghost and spirits? Mark Corkins returns as the Ghost of Marley. Corkins presence and movements certainly can fill the audience with as much dread as the fearful Scrooge who he is lecturing. His sonorous voice is uniquely adept at conveying that very sense of dread and seriousness. Audience favorite Kevin Kantor is also a returning veteran, again portraying the Ghost of Christmas Past. Kantor presents an eerie as well as ethereal spirit who easily manipulates Scrooge and initiates the breakdown of Scrooge’s resistance to the transition he is about to take on. Kantor can bring on the sinister with an amazing sense of grace and righteousness. And the Ghost of Christmas Present is once again Todd Denning. Again dressed in an elaborate green satin Santa suit, Denning is imposing, a bit dominating on stage. Denning’s Ghost is more a matter of fact than the others but he has no time for a Scrooge who is still teetering on the edge of disbelief…but Denning finally pushes him over the edge!
And there can not be A Christmas Carol without Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim. Cratchit is again played by Reese Madigan who is comfortable in his professional world as the lackey in the firm of Scrooge and Marley, knowing that the true meaning of life is family. Madigan’s movement from subservient wage laborer to loving doting family man is truly moving. And a highlight of each season’s performance is who is playing Tiny Tim. This year we are blessed by Harold Wagner, whose smile, energy, and enthusiasm fill the stage and gives us a delightful Tiny Tim.
I do have one unanswered question that someone from the Rep needs to go on record about. How do they work the Ghost of Christmas Future?
Bring your best singing voices…there will be a sing a long with the lyrics and a bouncing ball of Joy To The World to end the production. And the Ghosts will ask you a question or two as they torment Mr. Scrooge!
This last bit I am stealing (?) from my review from 2024. It is no less true in 2025 and given the trials and tribulations to rebuild the set, an appropriate homage to previous presentations:
Clements’ version of Dickens’ London is aswirl with constant movement, song, and dance. From the many carolers, townspeople, the staff at Fezziwig’s, to the alms collectors, there is always activity as befits a major city street. All the more events to keep us focused on the story being told.
The Milwaukee Rep will be presenting A Christmas Carol in the Pabst Theater from now until December 24, 2025. For more information and ticket ordering, click here.
Extra Credit Reading: The Playbill!
And yes, it still snows inside the Pabst Theater on ‘Christmas’!
