( Chicago, IL ) This holiday season, as indoor performances remain suspended due to COVID-19, Goodman Theatre produces A Christmas Carol as an audio play directed by Jessica Thebus. Offered free for all audiences, the 43rd annual production of Charles Dickens' classic features an all-Chicago cast—led by Larry Yando, in his 13th year as Ebenezer Scrooge. The production will be available to stream December 1 — 31, 2020; additional details to be announced. The full cast list appears below. Bank of America is the Major Corporate Sponsor of A Christmas Carol—An Audio Play.
"The notion of a holiday season without our production of A Christmas Carol—a favorite annual Chicago tradition for more than four decades—did not seem like an option, in spite of the many challenges we face in producing live theater at this moment," said Goodman Executive Director Roche Schulfer, who initiated the production at the Goodman in 1978. "At a time when this story is needed perhaps more than ever, we are pleased to offer this audio production free of charge as a gift to our city."
Nearly two million people have experienced Goodman Theatre's A Christmas Carol, "one of Chicago's treasured Christmas traditions" ( Theatermania ), now in its 43rd year. This holiday season, audiences experience its perennial delight anew with a FREE audio streaming version. Beloved voices and the Goodman's signature soundscape bring to vivid life Charles Dickens' heartwarming, uplifting classic. Miserly businessman Ebenezer Scrooge's sizable bank account is only matched by his disdain for the holidays. One Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by four ghosts who take him on a spectacular adventure through his past, present and future, helping him on his discovery of kindness, compassion and redemption.
Full Company of A Christmas Carol—An Audio Play
By Charles Dickens
Adapted by Tom Creamer
Adapted for Audio by Neena Arndt, Jessica Thebus and Richard Woodbury
Directed by Jessica Thebus
Asher Alcantara…………………Boy Scrooge/Child in Doorway/Peter Cratchit/Turkey Child/Percy
Kareem Bandealy………………Jacob Marley/Young Marley/Hat Seller
Dee Dee Batteast……………….Frida
Ariana Burks…………………….Fan/Martha Cratchit/Catherine
Thomas J. Cox………………….Bob Cratchit/Tree Seller
Allen Gilmore……………………Abe/Ortle/Schoolmaster/Poulterer
Cindy Gold………………………Mrs. Fezziwig/Passerby/Chestnut Seller
Gregory Hirte……………………Dick Wilkins/Musician/Fiddler/Wreath Seller
Susaan Jamshidi……………….Mrs. Cratchit
Vikram Konkimalla……………..Tiny Tim/Child#1
Jennifer Latimore……………….Belle/Frida's Guest/Young Woman
Aurora Real de Asua…………...Ghost of Christmas Past
Malcolm Ruhl……………………Musician/Mr. Spinet
Christopher Sheard…………….Young Scrooge/Young Man
Paris Strickland………………….Emily Cratchit/Child#3/NewspaperGirl
Bethany Thomas………………..Ghost of Christmas Present
Penelope Walker………………..Mrs. Fezziwig/Mrs. Crumb
Andrew White……………………Narrator
Larry Yando……………………...Ebenezer Scrooge
Creative Team
Eva Breneman…………………..Dialect Coach
Andrew Hansen…………………Original Music
Malcolm Ruhl……………………Music Director
Richard Woodbury……………...Sound Designer
Alden Vasquez…………………..Project Coordinator
ABOUT GOODMAN THEATRE
Chicago's theater since 1925, Goodman Theatre is a not-for-profit arts and community organization in the heart of the Loop, distinguished by the excellence and scope of its artistic programming and community engagement. Led by Artistic Director Robert Falls and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, the theater's artistic priorities include new play development ( more than 150 world or American premieres ), large scale musical theater works and reimagined classics. Artists and productions have earned two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards and more than 160 Jeff Awards, among other accolades. The Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson's "American Century Cycle." Its longtime annual holiday tradition A Christmas Carol, now in its fourth decade, has created a new generation of theatergoers in Chicago. The Goodman also frequently serves as a production and program partner with national and international companies and Chicago's Off-Loop theaters.
As a cultural and community organization invested in quality, diversity and community, Goodman Theatre is committed to using the art of theater for a better Chicago. Using the tools of the theatrical profession, the Goodman's Education and Engagement programs aim to develop generations of citizens who understand the cultures and stories of diverse voices. The Goodman's Alice Rapoport Center for Education and Engagement is the home of these programs, which are offered free of charge for Chicago youth—85% of whom come from underserved communities—schools and life-long learners.
Goodman Theatre was founded by William O. Goodman and his family in honor of their son Kenneth, an important figure in Chicago's cultural renaissance in the early 1900s. The Goodman family's legacy lives on through the continued work and dedication of Kenneth's family, including Albert Ivar Goodman, who with his late mother, Edith-Marie Appleton, contributed the necessary funds for the creation of the new Goodman center in 2000.
Today, Goodman Theatre leadership also includes the distinguished members of the Artistic Collective: Rebecca Gilman, Henry Godinez, Dael Orlandersmith, Steve Scott, Kimberly Senior, Chuck Smith, Regina Taylor, Henry Wishcamper and Mary Zimmerman. Jeff Hesse is Chairman of Goodman Theatre's Board of Trustees, Fran Del Boca is Women's Board President and Megan McCarthy Hayes is President of the Scenemakers Board for young professionals.
