Review: A Charming ‘Christmas Carol’ reopens Venice Theatre

After the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian to Venice Theatre’s main performance space in late September, there may not have been a better story for the company to mark its comeback than its annual production of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.”

This seasonal favorite, now in its 22nd season and already sold out, is about the transformation and rebirth of Ebenezer Scrooge from a miserly and bitter old man to one filled with love and appreciation for those around him. But the company’s family-friendly musical version also speaks to the rebirth of the theater itself.

It took only 65 days after the hurricane for the theater’s staff and volunteers to transform a former office building into a temporary performance space and to cast, design, rehearse and open the show. The new annex, which will eventually be the base for the theater’s education programs, is now home to a show filled with the joyous spirit of the season, the love of family and a message to “Count Your Blessings,” the show’s musical anthem.

Arts Newsletter:Sign up to receive the latest news on the Sarasota area arts scene every Monday

Nutcracker sweets:Your guide to holiday favorites on Sarasota-Manatee stages

Theater, dance, music, art and more:Your December guide to the arts in the Sarasota-Manatee area

A broad family made it possible for the theater to reopen, Producing Executive Director Murray Chase, and the production’s director, said before Friday’s opening night. Patrons, volunteers and staff combined to prove that Venice Theatre is “more than a building,” he added. The company has launched a major campaign to raise about $4 million for repairs, and is already nearing the first $500,000, which board members have pledged to match.

Chase urged audience members, including numerous families with delighted young children, to “make a donation that makes you wince a little bit.”

The show itself may encourage people to open their checkbooks.

Brad Wages returns to the role of Scrooge he took over four years ago. His icy glares in the early scenes could make you quiver, but he can also warm your heart as he begins to realize, with help from the ghosts of Christmases past, present and yet to come, how much he is missing from life by acting as he does.

As his clerk, Bob Cratchit, Douglas Landin plays an upstanding man who somehow maintains a sense of optimism, even as he struggles to provide for his large family, including Tiny Tim, on his low wages. Laurie Colton provides lots of love and support as his wife.

The cast features many veterans of past productions, including Neil Kasanofsky as the boisterous Fezziwig, who throws one heck of a holiday party, and the equally lively Ghost of Christmas Present. As Christmas Past, Hannah Randi literally glows in a lit-up white gown and headdress, as she seems to float and spin about the stage.

'We will find a way':Venice Theatre building faces millions in damage from Hurricane Ian

Behind the Scenes:Hurricane recovery comes in stages with perspective

Interrupted by the storm:Resilient Venice Theatre plans reopening after Hurricane Ian damage

It is a necessarily smaller and more intimate production than in past years, with fewer cast members but still lots of young actors. The comfortable new theater seats about 125 people, compared to more than 400 in the damaged Jervey mainstage, and everyone is close to the action.

Scenic designer Tim Wisgerhof makes good use of the long, rectangular playing space (the audience sits on three sides of it), with doors, beds and tables that are easily rolled into place and moved away again as the scenes shift.  Ross Boehringer’s costumes have the classic look of the Dickens story and John Michael Andzulis creates lighting that flows with the storytelling.

Music director Michelle Kasanofsky (who also plays Mrs. Fezziwig), leads a small band that brings life to the varied score that was initially created by E. Suzan Ott and Scott Keys (who wrote the script), and embellished over the years with additions by Jason Brenner and Eli Schildkraut.

All the elements work together to renew your appreciation of life, the goodness around us and the reality that theater can be a magical experience.

‘A Christmas Carol’

Based on the Charles Dickens novel. Book and lyrics by Scott Keys, music by E. Suzan Ott. Additional music by Scott Keys, Jason Brenner and Eli Schildkraut. Directed by Murray Chase. Reviewed Dec. 2. Through Dec. 19. Venice Theatre Raymond Center, 140 W. Tampa Ave., Venice. $26, $21 for college students and educators, $15 for youth. 941-488-1115; venicetheatre.org

Follow Jay Handelman on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Contact him at jay.handelman@heraldtribune.com. And please support local journalism by subscribing to the Herald-Tribune.