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ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY

Playhouse Theatre Group, Inc.

presents
A CHARLES DICKENS CHRISTMAS

Book by ROBERT OWENS SCOTT
Lyrics by TOM TOCE
Music by DOUGLAS J. COHEN
Orchestrations by DAN GIBSON

      Conceived and Originally Directed by BRUCE COLVILLE

Commissioned and Originally Produced by THEATREWORKS/USA

Director - David Addis
Music Director - Kevin Barlowski
Choreographer - Darlene Zoller
Scenic Designer - Lindsay G. Fuori
Lighting Designer -  Kenrick Fischer
Sound Designer - Ethan Gueldenzopf
Costume Designer - Lisa Ann Steier
Props Master - Judi Manfre
Production Stage Manager - Dana Rudnansky

A CHARLES DICKENS CHRISTMAS – THEATREWORKS/USA
is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.
www.mtishows.com

Any video and/or audio recording of this Production is strictly prohibited.

Tim Trotwood, Young Charles, & others
Ross Coughlin

Charles' Muse, Orphan Lady, Rachael, & others
Amber Emerson

Mrs. Furnival, Mrs. Trotwood, & others
Shannen Hofheimer

John Dickens, Mr. Trotwood, & others
Chris Marth

Charles Dickens
Brendan Massar

Mr. Chapman, Hargreaves, & others
Daniel Pippert

Orphans, Ball Guests
Kenneth Galm, Alex Van Der Hulst

SWINGS
Kenneth Galm, Alex Van Der Hulst

This performance runs approximately 65 minutes with no intermission. 

Charles Dickens' residence, the streets of London, and inside Dicken's mind.

“A gift given in love gives us the true meaning of Christmas.”

Charles Dickens’ infamous novel, A Christmas Carol, has been adapted and re-told in every medium. But the show you are about to see is an imaginative exploration of Dickens’ formative years, and how his past informs his present and his future. Through humor, some absurdity, and the help of a magical muse, Charles is able to overcome a severe case of writer’s block and strip away life’s small annoyances to find love and family at the heart of the “true” meaning of Christmas.

When we first starting conceptualizing this show, we started the way that all writers do: with blank paper — and wanted to feature this image prominently to visually illustrate the daunting task that an author faces every time they sit down to write. We have had so much fun finding abstract and imaginative ways to breathe life into this heart-warming tale.

I hope you’ll find the same joy, laughter, and maybe even a spark of inspiration in this story — just as we have! Thank you for joining us this holiday season!

David Addis

Director David Addis

Music Director Kevin Barlowski

Choreographer Darlene Zoller

Orchestration Daniel Gibson

Scenic Designer Lindsay Fuori

Costume Designer Lisa Ann Steier

Lighting Designer Kenrick Fischer

Sound Designer Ethan Gueldenzopf

Props Master/Set Dresser Judi Manfre

Production Stage Manager Dana Rudnansky

Assistant Stage Manager Vintage Kovel

Production Manager David Addis

Technical Director Johann Fitzpatrick

Scenic Carpenters Winfield Dobruck Jr, Gregory Mason, Reed Simiele

Electrics Crew Winfield Dobruck Jr, Gregory Mason, Thomas Mitchell, Reed Simiele

Scenic Charge Erin Sagnelli

Scenic Painter Rachel Daigneault

Dramaturg Liv Fassanella

Covid Compliance Officer Vintage Kovel

Lobby Design Darlene Zoller, Eileen Oconnor

Production Photographer Meredith Longo

Program Design Liv Fassanella

Program Printing Budget Printers

Poster/Postcard Design Dornenburg | Kallenbach Advertising

Webmaster Rick Fountain

E-Newsletter Lisa Steier

1. Charles Dickens was born in 1812 in Portsmouth in a relatively poor family.

2. He had eight brothers and sisters.

3. He himself had ten children who had relatively successful lives.

4. Dickens originally wanted to be an actor! In 1832, he lined up an audition for himself at Covent Garden, but a nasty head cold saw him miss this appointment with destiny, and it was a future of writing for him.

5. Dickens was absolutely brillant at performing his own writing. People reacted to his performances like it was a rock concert! They laughed, screamed and applauded loudly.

6. His first novel was called The Pickwick Papers, in 1836.

7. The Mystery of Edwin Drood was his last novel and is indeed a mystery, as he never had time to finish it before he died.

8. Charles Dickens invented about 200 words that we use in our everyday life: 'flummox', 'the creeps' and 'having butterfingers' to name but a few.

9. The expression “What the dickens!”, however, predates Charles Dickens and can even be found in Shakespeare’s comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor.

10. More than 400 big- and small-screen adaptations have been made from or inspired by his novels! 135 of them being from A Christmas Carol alone! Have you seen any? Can you name some? Muppets Christmas Carol...The Man Who Invented Christmas...Spirited...Scrooged... just to name a few!

We are grateful to the following people and businesses who made special contributions to this production of A Charles Dickens Christmas.

Avery Heights Senior Living

Gary Belanger 

Aaron Bleck

Castle Craig Players

Doug Cohen 

Edible Arrangements

Nina Elgo

Gene Evans

Moonyean Field

Excel Fitness

Ian Galligan

Robert Garrett

Dan Gibson 

Golden Girl Sound

Hartford Stage

Hoffman SummerWood Senior Living

The Lady and the Leopard

Shannon L’Heureux

Deb and Bob Loomis

Pat Machristian

Mandel Jewish Community Center

Dawn and Fran Rudnansky

Theatre Guild of Simsbury

Tom Toce 

Carole Wagner

Co-Founder/Executive Director
Tracy Flater

Co-Founder/Artistic Director
Sean Harris

Co-Founder/Artistic Director
Darlene Zoller

Company/Business Manager
Jonathan Katz

Interim Production Manager
David Addis

Technical Director/Master Electrician
Johann Fitzpartrick

Director of Marketing & PR
Natalie Noack

Literary Manager
Moira O’Sullivan

Dramaturg/New Works Coordinator
Liv Fassanella

Development Associate
Emma Mills Cook

Director of Education
Jill Zarcone

Education Coordinator
Jasmine Calhoun

Education Faculty
Marie Altenor, Christina DeCarlo, Josh Karam, Nick Palazzo, Anna Ricciuti, Jill Zarcone

Front of House Manager
Tori Mooney

Box Office Administrators
Jasmine Calhoun, Cianna Costa, Liv Fassanella, Matthew Guerrera

OFFICERS

President
Besty Udal

Vice President 
Peter Evans

Co-Treasurers
Matthew Bragg and Richard Rubenstein

Secretary
Sarah Jakubowski

BOARD MEMBERS

Paige Buade

Melanie Ellis

William Fish

Andrew Latimer

Gail Mangs

Susan Miller

Annie Scott

Rebecca Selig

Joanna Sprout

Vin Sukhraj

Ruth Van Winkle

BOARD MEMBER EMERITUS

Matthew Bragg

Chuck Coursey, Founding Vice President

Bonnie Gauthier

Carol McCabe

Margaret Rattigan

Julianne Roth

Robert Rowlson

Ron Roy

Richard Rubenstein

Robert Slifka

David Wurzer, Founding President

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Gaetano Albani, Jim Bergenn, Stephanie Blozy, Valeria Caldwell-Gaines, Erika Cantin, Mayor Shari Cantor, Stefanie Chambers, Chris Conway, Anna Crawford, Matthew Cuddy, Kyra Dorsey, Tom Dorsey, Kevin Doyle, Nina Elgo, Kenneth Elligers, Dan Falotico, David Figliuzzi, Matt Fleury, Gail Frahm, Tracy Frankel, Kathy Frederick, Lisa Greene, Donna Haghighat, Bob Hilborn, Calida Jones, Susan King, Andy Leiberman, Dave Macri, Charles Mallory, Gloria Mengual, Mike Michaud, Tanya Penman-Sterling, David Polk, Mike Rouette, Wanda Seldon, Kim Silcox, Bill Silva, Amy Silverman, Jonathan Slifka, Howard Sovronsky, Rachel Sptizig, Brittany Stephenson, Nyaunu Stevens, Yvette Young

Playhouse Theatre Group, Inc. is a fully vaccinated company. Masks are not required but are highly encouraged. For your safety, we have made the following improvements to our ventilation system:

Playhouse on Park has undertaken an effort to improve the quality of the indoor air inside the main theater, rehearsal spaces, and all other associated facilities.  The work has followed the Ventilation Verification requirements put forth by the Actors' Equity Association as an effort to help ensure the safety of member actors in response to the worldwide Coronavirus pandemic

The project has followed guidance from the CDC, NIH, OSHA, and other relevant authorities, which indicates that the main transmission pathway of the SARS-COV-19 disease is via airborne (i.e. aerosolized or droplet form) viral particles traveling from an infected individual's lungs to an otherwise uninfected individual.  This targeted the risk of infection posed by potentially unsafe concentrations of infectious air in contained indoor spaces, despite distancing and the regular use of face coverings.

Following a shared air quality (SAQ) assessment, which included a complete evaluation of the current HVAC infrastructure and the usage and flow of all spaces, areas were identified to make improvements to the quality of inhaled, or rebreathed, air.  These included improvements to filtration, increased ventilation, and installation of air purification technology to deactivate and remove potentially harmful particles.  These steps were followed by a reassessment of each space to help quantify and ensure the health and safety improvements that were made.

The air quality work aligned with standards developed by ASHRAE along with the EPA and NEMI, and were performed by a technician fully licensed in the State of Connecticut.