COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Contemporary Theatre of Ohio debuted a fresh take on a classic holiday story this weekend.
The latest play to hit The Contemporary's stage is an all-new, one-woman presentation of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" starring celebrated actor, director and playwright Angela Iannone.
"Angela is one of my favorite actors to watch in the world," said Leda Hoffmann, artistic director of The Contemporary as well as the director of this play. "She's just so incredibly talented and she has such an amazing toolkit of the ways that she can bring characters into the world."
Iannone stars as author Charles Dickens as he presents an abridged telling of his beloved Christmas story. As Dickens, the actor portrays many of the most famous characters from the tale.
"It's everyone you know and love: Scrooge, Marley, The Ghost of Christmas Past and Present and Future, the Cratchits - all of these different characters you know from the story inhabited in one actor," explained Hoffmann. "It's not full of tricks and gimmicks and she doesn't switch hats or anything. She just uses her voices, her body language to shift into these different characters."
Written by Greg Oliver Bodine, this version of the story emphasizes what parts of "A Christmas Carol" that Dickens was likely to recount in a public performance, since reading the text in its entirety would have taken much too long.
"Charles Dickens himself used to tour the world and did two tours of America," explained Hoffmann. "In fact, he was here in Columbus [and] spent the night on the same block where the Riffe Theatre is where we're doing the play."
The set - a chair, small table, hat rack, and a glass of water - is designed to represent the types of spaces in which Dickens would have performed his dramatic readings all those years ago. The only deviation is the modern lighting designed by Jason Fassl to highlight the shifts in tone from character to character and scene to scene.
The play's runtime is right around 70 minutes, which Hoffmann pointed out is perfect for all ages. And attendance is limited to 100 spectators with no one farther than five rows away from the stage, allowing for a very intimate presentation.
"We've really created this production to be for anybody," said Hoffmann. "For people who just love a good story, who want to be immersed in a nice, intimate storytelling adventure."
The Contemporary Theatre of Ohio's presentation of "A Christmas Carol" runs through Dec. 23. For showtimes and ticket information, just visit their website: https://www.thecontemporaryohio.org/