“…a real Gothic-inspired theatrical treat…”

A Christmas Carol – adapted by Karen Louise Hebden, Northern Stage, Newcastle

by Kay Wilson

This adaption of A Christmas Carol, one of Charles Dickens most-loved festive stories, has plenty to sing about.

It captures the audience right from the start with the stage set up in between two sections of seating on either side so it’s played ‘in the round’. The ‘Fezziwick’ banner, with its funny nod to Fenwick’s branding, looked like a proscenium arch.

The cast start the performance in an informal, low-key way with singing off-stage which builds well to the street scene outside Scrooge’s house at the start of the story. This was cleverly designed by Debbie Duru, with miniature houses lit up and moved to illustrate different scenes.

We meet Scrooge, played with perfection by the North East’s own Michael Hodgson, at his miserly and cruel worst. Young Scrooge was also well-played by Benjamin Storey.

The counter-balance of Scrooge and his closed, hunched demeanour contrasted so well with Gabriel Akamo’s humble Bob Cratchit, who was on a knife’s edge in case he lost his job, despite it being terrible.

The set used trapdoors to bring in elements that are so integral to the plot such as the measly fire in Scrooge’s office, where Bob is forbidden from adding any more coal, to make the room bearable.

Once the scene was set for the start of Scrooge’s personal journey, the whole production set off on an extraordinary adventure with imaginative special effects.

Marley’s famous door knocker apparition was the first to make my jaw drop. Then Malik Ibheis, who played him, was transformed into the ghost of Christmas past. It was unexpected and chilling. I’m not sure my younger self could have coped – and that was just for starters. Much more was to come, and it delighted and shocked the audience.

The absolute joy of Scrooge seeing his past happiness was a great switch and the revelry of the Fezziwig party, along with his depiction of his feelings for his sister, Fan, were pitch perfect.

It’s fair to say no-one would have seen the Ghost of Christmas Present coming and I won’t spoil it by saying how that was the case. Just remember that Malik Ibheis is a leading mime and aerialist performer and this show gives him ample opportunity to tell the ghost part of the story to the most dramatic effect.

All of the Cratchit family life and its struggles were played well by Alice McKenzie as Bob’s wife and Taku Mutero, as a not-so-Tiny Tim.

Scrooge’s wretchedness, by the time the third ghost visits, was very well done. The Ghost of Christmas Future was like watching the love child of Gollum from Lord of the Rings and Voldemort from Harry Potter. Brilliant and terrifying. I would defy anyone to not change after seeing their future from such a dreadful visitation.

This whole production was not only a salutary tale of what can come back to bite you, if you don’t act like decent human being, but a real Gothic-inspired theatrical treat.

The diversity of the cast was a welcome change to many Christmas productions I’ve seen over the years. It was also interesting and thought-provoking to have Scrooge’s niece, Frederica, beautifully played by Holly May Austin, married to a woman.

Overall, I thought the whole cast delivered a fantastic festive play, which was different to other versions of A Christmas Carol I’ve seen, and performed with great talent.

The script by Karen Louise Hebden and the direction by Natalie Ibu, Northern Stage’s artistic director, worked well and captured the spirit (no pun intended) of Dickens’ original while updating it for today’s audiences, young and old.

I recommend you grab a ticket before it closes on 4 January.

A Christmas Carol plays at the Northern Stage, Newcastle until Saturday 4 January 2025. Tickets are available here.

Kay Wilson is a North East-based writer. She won Runner-Up in the Self-Published category at the Comedy Women in Print awards for her debut novel, The Stand-Up Mam. It was inspired by her own experience of performing comedy for two years and charts the adventures of a perfect mother who does stand-up. It transforms her but blows up family life. Described as ‘hilarious and heart-warming’, signed copies can be bought at The Bound bookshop, Whitley Bay. The novel is also available on Amazon here. Kay has a website which promotes extraordinary women and gives updates on her writing life.