A Christmas Carol: What Was Dickens Thinking?

October 31, 2012

What do Jim Carrey, Michael Caine, George C. Scott, Yosemite Sam, and Mr. Magoo all have in common?

They've all portrayed Ebenezer Scrooge in film adaptations of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

Next to the original Christmas story, the one in the Bible, Dickens' 1843 novella about Scrooge's fall and eventual redemption is probably the most popular holiday story, ever. It is also the most adapted. Countless stage productions, no less than two dozen films, as many animated features and endless parodies have been made from the story of the miser who gets scared straight.

But why is a story featuring an angry old man, four truly frightening ghosts, starving children, a dying boy, and grave robbers so popular at Christmastime? Isn't it better suited to Halloween? What was Charles Dickens thinking?

Find out at Night Before Christmas Carol Monday, Nov. 26 at 7:00 p.m. at the Kearney Branch.

Meet Charles Dickens, played by David zum Brunnen, in his study the night he imagined his holiday classic. Researched and written by renowned Dickens scholar Elliot Engel, Night Before Christmas Carol introduces the audience to Dickens and his storyteller's imagination. Zum Brunnen portrays not only Dickens but 17 characters from the book in this one-man stage production.

Don't say "Bah, Humbug!" to this program. We know what can happen when someone says that.

Sara PD
Kearney Branch