A Different, Delightful Production of "A Christmas Carol"

"For years, the UNL Theatre Department has been using the same script treatment of Dicken's holiday classic. These productions have generally captured the holiday spirit of the tale, but were also rather bombastic, oratorical rituals that became uncreative, rather sterile efforts.

Aha! But this year there's a difference. And that difference is entirely due to Jeffrey Scott Elwell's condensed, abbreviated adaptation and Rob Urbinati's marvelously entertaining direction. Running just under ninety minutes and performed without an intermission, this year's "A Christmas Carol" is like a breath of fresh air - although that draft also carries a slight, wonderfully pungent whiff of death upon it.

The entire production sustains a certain Tim Burton-esque quality of black humor with it, from Sound Designer Stephen A. Manocchio's "Edward Scissorhands"-like background music to the tattered, putrefying ghouls - reminiscent of "Beetlejuice - that populate Ebenezer Scrooge's apartments.

Gone are the sickeningly saccharine-coated pleasantries of the previous productions. Present instead is an effort that is entirely more accessible to an audience - and a n effort that with less histrionics conveys an appropriate political and social commentary..."

David Ackroyd is excellent in his portrayal of the cantankerous and sullen Scrooge, slowly and methodically unfolding and developing the old miser's character so that his transition is indeed actually believable at the end of the show. Performing with control and theatrical depth, Ackroyd's performance never falters..."

This year's "A Christmas Carol" is fun, fast-moving, albeit a tad shadowy. In other words - an unmitigated delight."

Larry L. Kubert, Lincoln Journal Star
December 8, 2000