Los Angeles County officials and Gov. Gavin Newsom may be saying “Bah, humbug!” to most celebrations of the holidays, but Boston Court Pasadena has found a way to save Christmas after all. The Pasadena theatrical institution will bring joy to the world by releasing a special filmed version of Charles Dickens’ beloved holiday classic “A Christmas Carol” worldwide this Saturday, Nov. 28.
Starring Tony Award-winning actor Jefferson Mays and produced by Hunter Arnold, the streaming video event will benefit Boston Court Pasadena as well as other regional, community, and amateur theaters across the country which have been devastated by the pandemic.
Directed by two-time Tony Award nominee Michael Arden, adapted by Mays, Susan Lyons, and Arden, and conceived by Arden and Tony Award nominee Dane Laffrey, the filmed version is based on the acclaimed 2018 production which made its world premiere at Los Angeles’ Geffen Playhouse.
“A Christmas Carol” was filmed at New York’s United Palace, which was chosen to preserve the power of the theatrical storytelling Mays and Arden have created. The production was called “a stunning adaptation” by Jordan Riefe of The Hollywood Reporter when it played at the Geffen Playhouse in 2018.
“Due to COVID-19, the country’s theaters have lost over 80% of their income, a number that is devastating to our community,” says producer Hunter Arnold, who has won four Tony Awards, including for smash hits “Kinky Boots” and “Dear Evan Hansen.” “These theaters, the work they produce, and the artists and workers they support are a fundamental part of our society. We must fight for their survival.”
“‘A Christmas Carol’ was my first experience of living theater, since my mother and father would read it out loud every year,” adds Jefferson Mays, who will star as Ebenezer Scrooge in the classic tale of an embittered man who transforms his heart in time to celebrate Christmas. “My father would tell the story with clarity and humanity, while my mother, eyes ablaze, would transform into the characters, from the tortured Jacob Marley, to little Fan and the entire Cratchit family. Both, in their ways, created magic. And now here we are, aspiring to bring this magic to people across the country during this challenging time.”
Mays’ dynamic turn as Scrooge follows a career in which he’s performed at the Geffen Playhouse in “I Am My Own Wife” and “Yes, Prime Minister!” and on Broadway in several major plays including ‘The Best Man,” “Pygmalion,” and “Of Thee I Sing.” His 2018 performance in the role drew raves from the Los Angeles Times critic Charles McNulty, who noted: “Jefferson Mays not only got me to see ‘A Christmas Carol,’ something I’ve vowed never to do again. But he got me to rave about it. For true theater lovers, there can be no better gift this season.”
Tickets for “A Christmas Carol” are $57.50 and may be purchased at https://bit.ly/BCcarol. For more information, visit bostoncourtpasadena.org.
