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\'Tis the Season
by Sarah Bolson
A Broken Christmas Carol reviewed December 14, 2005
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Midtown is brimming with tourists. The tree is lit, the Rockettes are kicking, and your wallet is empty. Ah, Christmas in New York City. But this time of year not only ushers in a wave of doe-eyed sightseers eager to see the famous Rockefeller Center spruce. It also brings new theatrical productions, each dedicated to this most celebrated of seasons. With so many shows to choose from, deciding what to see is as daunting a task as navigating along Fifth Avenue.
Search no more. If you are going to see one show during the holidays, let it be A Broken Christmas Carol, produced by the Broken Watch Theater Company at the Michael Weller Theater. It is a perfectly updated take on that classic Christmas tale: Ebenezer Scrooge is an evil CEO, the Cratchit family has entered a reality-TV contest to win money for Tiny Tim's leg surgery, and two Jewish kids look for the season's meaning at the mall. A Broken Christmas Carol gives the audience a shot of Christmas spirit spiked with 21st-century cynicism and irreverence.
The play is actually the combination of three separate stories written by playwrights James Christy, J. Holtham, and Kendra Levin and seamlessly woven together into one unified tale. "Yet to Come," by Holtham, is the story of a lapsed homeboy, Shawn (Keith Arthur Bolden), who is forced to remember the life he left behind when he is visited by the ghost of his friend DeWayne (William Jackson Harper).
Like Scrooge and Marley, Shawn and DeWayne were once friends and business partners. DeWayne died on a Christmas Eve years earlier when the two were on a drug run. Bolden, as the withdrawn Shawn, and Harper, as the loudmouth, wisecracking DeWayne (it is hard not to compare him to Chris Rock), play off each other with ease. As a result, hidden underneath the barrage of politically incorrect jokes—the "n" word gets used a lot—the friendship the two share exhibits a tenderness that conveys something very real about the Christmas spirit.
In "The Scrooge Show," written by Christy, Bob Cratchit pimps his family out to reality TV. A faithful employee of Scrooge/Marley Inc. for 22 years, Cratchit was recently "transitioned" from full-time to contract employee, losing his health insurance in the process. Now he and his family must prove they are the embodiment of the holiday spirit to win their "dream Christmas" and get the money to pay for Tiny Tim's surgery.
With a daughter who is a stripper, a wife who is a pothead, and Bob's own alcohol problem, these 21st-century Cratchits are as dysfunctional as they come. A far cry from the ultimate martyr family in Dickens's tale, Mr. Cratchit, Mrs. Cratchit, Martha, Belinda, and Tiny Tim (Leo Lauer, Ellen Daschbach, Aly Wirth, Janine Barris and Chaz Brawer, respectively) are stereotypical "white trash." But despite the alcohol, drugs, and exotic dancing, they do love each other and embody the meaning of the season. Rather than becoming hokey in this realization, the talented ensemble plays these characters with over-the-top hilarity. It is like watching a Saturday Night Live skit unfold before your eyes.
Levin's "All I Want for Christmas is Jews" follows Iggie (J. Clint Allen) and Wanda (Barris), apparently the only two Jews in their town, as they go on a Christmas Eve search to find the meaning of the holiday. Along the way, they discover that no one wants them around. In church, a lady in a choir gown tells them, "You people are ruining this town," and one of their neighbors exclaims, "God bless us every one, except you!" Even though no one around them seems to embody the Christmas spirit, they manage to find a glimmer of it in a most unexpected place—each other.
These three stories weave beautifully together for two reasons: wonderful direction by Drew DeCorleto, Broken Watch's artistic director, and simple yet effective sets by designer Joshua Alan Robinson. Robinson has created an illustrated backdrop that flips back and forth like the pages of a book, along with black-and-white cardboard props—including a cardboard baby Jesus—that are at once simple and artistic. His sets, coupled with DeCorleto's direction, provide this irreverent piece with a fanciful and, yes, Christmas aesthetic.
If the sound of jingle bells and the smell of chestnuts roasting make you want to scream "Bah, humbug" (but deep down, you get a little misty-eyed when Scrooge buys the Cratchits a Christmas goose), then this is the show for you. And it is nowhere near Rockefeller Center.
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Michael Weller Theatre
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Category: Comedy
Written by: James Christy, J Holtham, and Kendra Levin
Directed by: Drew DeCorleto
Produced by: Broken Watch Theatre Company
Opened: December 8, 2005
Closed: December 30, 2005
Running Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Theater: Michael Weller Theatre
Address: 311 West 43 Street, Suite 602
New York, NY 10036
Yahoo! Maps Directions
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Tickets: $19.00
n/a
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Creative Team
Written by: James Christy, J. Holtham and Kendra Levin
Directed by: Drew DeCorleto
Assistant Director: Barrett Hall
Produced by: The Broken Watch Theater Company
Lighting Design: Barrett Hall
Sound Design: Drew DeCorleto and Barrett Hall
Set Designer: Joshua Alan Robinson
Costume Designer: Barrett Hall, Jenny Rodriguez, Sandra Schobel and Teresa Goding
Scenic Artist: Matthew Powell
Assistant Scenic Artist: Brian Williams
Music: Drew Sarich
Cast
J. Clint Allen as Iggie/Production Assistant No. 1
Janine Barris as Wanda/Belinda
Keith Arthur Bolden as Shawn
Chaz Brawer as Tiny Tim/Production Assistant No. 2
Ellen Daschbach as Mrs. Cratchit/Christmas Mom
Danielle Davenport as Shandra/Woman/Church Lady
Guil Fisher as Scrooge/Mall Santa/Radio DJ
William Jackson Harper as DeWayne/Host
Leo Lauer as Dad's Voice/Mr. Cratchit/ Christmas Dad
Aly Wirth as Maddie/Martha
Crew
Stage Manager: Melanie Ganim
Music Production and Engineering: Matthew Luchsinger and True Beat Productions
Sound Board Ops: Lauren Duffy and Jenny Rodriguez
Production Graphic Designer: Lisa Marien
Props: Teresa Goding, Caitlin Hurd, Barrett Hall
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