[NEohioPAL]PD REVIEWS - Child's Christmas in Wales and A Christmas Carol.

Mon Dec 9 20:39:05 PST 2002

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A Child=E2=80=99s Christmas in Wales
James Damico=20

Special to The Plain Dealer

It's no mystery why the stage adaptation of Dylan Thomas' prose poem, "A=20
Child's Christmas in Wales," has become a holiday staple. Its rare blend of=20
spellbinding language with a tender evocation of more innocent times can rin=
g=20
box-office cash registers across the country as merrily as Santa's sleigh=20
bells.
Actors' Summit is offering its third mounting, on the way - if those bells=20
clang joyously enough - to making the family-friendly piece a permanent=20
year-end anchor to its schedule.=20

The play has the adult Thomas narrating through boyhood eyes his memories of=
=20
Christmases during the 1930s in his Welsh hometown. They are remembrances so=
=20
mingled that he can't recall "whether it snowed for six days and nights when=
=20
I was twelve or . . . twelve days and nights when I was six."=20
The poet's lush, enveloping words are what truly distinguish his homespun=20
recollections. Thomas remembers the hearty Christmas dinners and the day a=20
flaming turkey brought the fire brigade, a spectacle "better than all the=20
cats in Wales standing in a row." The uncles "breathing like dolphins," the=20
aunt who "laced her tea with rum, because it was only once a year" and the=20
whole "wool-white, bell-tongued ball of holidays resting at the rim of the=20
carol-singing sea."=20

Adapters Jeremy Brooks and Adrian Mitchell have added much domestic detail,=20
resulting in a script with only one-third Thomas' own words. But, despite a=20
tendency to turn what is lyric into family chronicle, the outcome is faithfu=
l=20
to the original.=20

While director Neil Thackaberry maintains that spirit, he's less consistent=20
in drawing sharply etched characterizations from his cast. Peter Voinovich=20
conveys the narrator's enthusiasm and innate goodness. But a penchant for=20
laborious overenunciation hampers what should be fluid expression.=20

Adding to the problem is a misguided stab at a Welsh accent, which many more=
=20
in the company also vainly attempt.=20

Veteran Wayne Turney does a smooth turn - without an accent - as Thomas'=20
father, as does the overqualified Paula Duesing in the small mother's role.=20
MaryJo Alexander is a properly prim family temptress, Frank Jackman a=20
trumpet-voiced uncle, Mindi Bonde a sympathetic mouse of an aunt, James Brow=
n=20
an excitable postman, Eryn Murman a believable brat, and Jason Brown and=20
Thomas Cummings appealingly boyish lads.=20

The production's true holiday gift, though, is the priceless gift of a poet'=
s=20
language.=20

Damico is a free-lance writer in Cleveland.=20

A CHRISTMAS CAROL
Carolyn Jack, =20
Plain Dealer Arts Reporter
CORRECTION: Because of incomplete information supplied to The Plain Dealer,=20
the name of the young actor playing the role of Tiny Tim in the opening-nigh=
t=20
performance of Great Lakes Theater Festival's "A Christmas Carol" was=20
incorrect in a review. The actor was Aric Generette Floyd. END.=20
Visit a favorite relative or old friend you haven't seen for years and what=20
do you feel? Delight, surely, a warm rush of fond familiarity, an eagerness=20
to catch up and re-establish closeness - followed not long afterwards by a=20
silent, internal chorus of "oh, yeahs" as you recognize all over again your=20
loved one's quirks, flaws and rather irritating habits.=20
Great Lakes Theater Festival's version of "A Christmas Carol" is an old=20
friend to many Northeast Ohioans. It has been with us now for 14 years,=20
taking us back every holiday season to the 19th-century world of Ebenezer=20
Scrooge, Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim, where love and Christmas miracles can=20
transform suffering into joy.=20
Even those who have never seen the production before can count on feeling at=
=20
home with its well-known story, nostalgic decor and traditional carols. But=20
charming and even touching as much of the show is, new and repeat viewers=20
alike will have moments where something jolts them a little.=20
It's as if they were realizing for the thousandth time that Aunt Myrna whine=
s=20
like a mosquito and that Grandpa George is going to groan out the history of=
=20
his lumbago again.=20
Great Lakes' "Carol," adapted and originally directed by Gerald Freedman,=20
unfolds as a story within a story: the Victorian-era Cleaveland family is=20
celebrating Christmas Eve at home by reading Dickens' tale aloud. In the min=
d=20
of the littlest Cleaveland, William, the colorful characters in the pages of=
=20
his mother's book assume the faces and personalities of his siblings, parent=
s=20
and household servants.=20
It's a clever way to ease children into "A Christmas Carol," except for one=20
thing: Dickens' 160-year-old prose proves to be too complex and old-fashione=
d=20
to be understood easily as narration, especially by children. A lot of=20
whispered explanations become necessary if your companions are, say, 10 or=20
under.=20
A scene or two also turns out to be the moral equivalent of that lumbago=20
monologue, particularly the one where the spirit of Christmas Present takes=20
Scrooge on a flyover of poor British miners and fishermen celebrating=20
Christmas. It looks beautiful, with candle-bearing characters on a darkened=20
stage lighted like deep night with a galaxy of tiny golden stars, but it=20
slows down the play's momentum to the point of stalling out.=20
Perhaps, though, the production's single biggest flaw is one of casting.=20
Dudley Swetland, who is in his sixth season of playing this Scrooge,=20
amusingly conveys the infectious giddiness of Scrooge's reformed personality=
=20
on Christmas morning. It's everything up to that point that doesn't convince=
.=20

A man of hale appearance and rich voice, Swetland looks and sounds the=20
antithesis of that pinched and spiritually shriveled Scrooge we first must=20
recognize for the dried-up miser that he is before his complete reformation=20
can work dramatically. Swetland's early Scrooge comes through as simply=20
irascible and rather pleased with his irascibility, to judge by his frequent=
=20
barking laugh.=20
And when the Christmas ghosts arrive, Scrooge and the production create no=20
real sense of fear or suspense. Scrooge isn't frail and overwhelmed enough;=20
the towering spirit of Christmas Yet to Come doesn't surprise us with a scar=
y=20
entrance. It is just sort of there. Without terror and the relief that shoul=
d=20
come along with the happy ending, the show feels a bit flat.=20
But these problems and other more minor ones, such as the cast's peculiar mi=
x=20
of fake English and regional American accents, can't spoil the production's=20
good qualities any more than your sister's train-horn sneeze can really spoi=
l=20
a gorgeous Christmas dinner of roast turkey and mince pie.=20
With a wonderfully cute and lively little boy named Roderick P. Dayton as=20
William/Tiny Tim; John Ezell and Gene Emerson Friedman's lushly evocative se=
t=20
pieces of glowing windows and creepy, Art Nouveau stone gargoyles; and a cas=
t=20
of fine singers, Great Lakes' "Carol" resumes its rightful place in the=20
heart, right next to Grandpa George.=20

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<HTML>A Child=E2=80=99s Chri=
stmas in Wales 
James Damico=20
 
Special to The Plain Dealer
 
 
It's no mystery why the stage adaptation of Dylan Thomas' prose poem, "A=
 Child's Christmas in Wales," has become a holiday staple. Its rare blend of=
 spellbinding language with a tender evocation of more innocent times can ri=
ng box-office cash registers across the country as merrily as Santa's sleigh=
 bells. 
Actors' Summit is offering its third mounting, on the way - if those bells c=
lang joyously enough - to making the family-friendly piece a permanent year-=
end anchor to its schedule.=20
 
The play has the adult Thomas narrating through boyhood eyes his memories of=
 Christmases during the 1930s in his Welsh hometown. They are remembrances s=
o mingled that he can't recall "whether it snowed for six days and nights wh=
en I was twelve or . . . twelve days and nights when I was six." 
The poet's lush, enveloping words are what truly distinguish his homespun re=
collections. Thomas remembers the hearty Christmas dinners and the day a fla=
ming turkey brought the fire brigade, a spectacle "better than all the cats=20=
in Wales standing in a row." The uncles "breathing like dolphins," the aunt=20=
who "laced her tea with rum, because it was only once a year" and the whole=20=
"wool-white, bell-tongued ball of holidays resting at the rim of the carol-s=
inging sea."=20

Adapters Jeremy Brooks and Adrian Mitchell have added much domestic detail,=20=
resulting in a script with only one-third Thomas' own words. But, despite a=20=
tendency to turn what is lyric into family chronicle, the outcome is faithfu=
l to the original.=20

While director Neil Thackaberry maintains that spirit, he's less consistent=20=
in drawing sharply etched characterizations from his cast. Peter Voinovich c=
onveys the narrator's enthusiasm and innate goodness. But a penchant for lab=
orious overenunciation hampers what should be fluid expression.=20

Adding to the problem is a misguided stab at a Welsh accent, which many more=
 in the company also vainly attempt.=20
 
Veteran Wayne Turney does a smooth turn - without an accent - as Thomas' fat=
her, as does the overqualified Paula Duesing in the small mother's role. Mar=
yJo Alexander is a properly prim family temptress, Frank Jackman a trumpet-v=
oiced uncle, Mindi Bonde a sympathetic mouse of an aunt, James Brown an exci=
table postman, Eryn Murman a believable brat, and Jason Brown and Thomas Cum=
mings appealingly boyish lads.=20

<BR>
The production's true holiday gift, though, is the priceless gift of a poet'=
s language.=20

<BR>
<BR>
Damico is a free-lance writer in Cleveland.=20

A CHRISTMAS CAROL 
Carolyn Jack, =20
Plain Dealer Arts Reporter 
CORRECTION: Because of incomplete information supplied to The Plain Dealer,=20=
the name of the young actor playing the role of Tiny Tim in the opening-nigh=
t performance of Great Lakes Theater Festival's "A Christmas Carol" was inco=
rrect in a review. The actor was Aric Generette Floyd. END. 
Visit a favorite relative or old friend you haven't seen for years and what=20=
do you feel? Delight, surely, a warm rush of fond familiarity, an eagerness=20=
to catch up and re-establish closeness - followed not long afterwards by a s=
ilent, internal chorus of "oh, yeahs" as you recognize all over again your l=
oved one's quirks, flaws and rather irritating habits. 
Great Lakes Theater Festival's version of "A Christmas Carol" is an old frie=
nd to many Northeast Ohioans. It has been with us now for 14 years, taking u=
s back every holiday season to the 19th-century world of Ebenezer Scrooge, B=
ob Cratchit and Tiny Tim, where love and Christmas miracles can transform su=
ffering into joy. 
Even those who have never seen the production before can count on feeling at=
 home with its well-known story, nostalgic decor and traditional carols. But=
 charming and even touching as much of the show is, new and repeat viewers a=
like will have moments where something jolts them a little. 
It's as if they were realizing for the thousandth time that Aunt Myrna whine=
s like a mosquito and that Grandpa George is going to groan out the history=20=
of his lumbago again. 
Great Lakes' "Carol," adapted and originally directed by Gerald Freedman, un=
folds as a story within a story: the Victorian-era Cleaveland family is cele=
brating Christmas Eve at home by reading Dickens' tale aloud. In the mind of=
 the littlest Cleaveland, William, the colorful characters in the pages of h=
is mother's book assume the faces and personalities of his siblings, parents=
 and household servants. 
It's a clever way to ease children into "A Christmas Carol," except for one=20=
thing: Dickens' 160-year-old prose proves to be too complex and old-fashione=
d to be understood easily as narration, especially by children. A lot of whi=
spered explanations become necessary if your companions are, say, 10 or unde=
r. 
A scene or two also turns out to be the moral equivalent of that lumbago mon=
ologue, particularly the one where the spirit of Christmas Present takes Scr=
ooge on a flyover of poor British miners and fishermen celebrating Christmas=
. It looks beautiful, with candle-bearing characters on a darkened stage lig=
hted like deep night with a galaxy of tiny golden stars, but it slows down t=
he play's momentum to the point of stalling out. 
Perhaps, though, the production's single biggest flaw is one of casting. Dud=
ley Swetland, who is in his sixth season of playing this Scrooge, amusingly=20=
conveys the infectious giddiness of Scrooge's reformed personality on Christ=
mas morning. It's everything up to that point that doesn't convince. 
A man of hale appearance and rich voice, Swetland looks and sounds the antit=
hesis of that pinched and spiritually shriveled Scrooge we first must recogn=
ize for the dried-up miser that he is before his complete reformation can wo=
rk dramatically. Swetland's early Scrooge comes through as simply irascible=20=
and rather pleased with his irascibility, to judge by his frequent barking l=
augh. 
And when the Christmas ghosts arrive, Scrooge and the production create no r=
eal sense of fear or suspense. Scrooge isn't frail and overwhelmed enough; t=
he towering spirit of Christmas Yet to Come doesn't surprise us with a scary=
 entrance. It is just sort of there. Without terror and the relief that shou=
ld come along with the happy ending, the show feels a bit flat. 
But these problems and other more minor ones, such as the cast's peculiar mi=
x of fake English and regional American accents, can't spoil the production'=
s good qualities any more than your sister's train-horn sneeze can really sp=
oil a gorgeous Christmas dinner of roast turkey and mince pie. 
With a wonderfully cute and lively little boy named Roderick P. Dayton as Wi=
lliam/Tiny Tim; John Ezell and Gene Emerson Friedman's lushly evocative set=20=
pieces of glowing windows and creepy, Art Nouveau stone gargoyles; and a cas=
t of fine singers, Great Lakes' "Carol" resumes its rightful place in the he=
art, right next to Grandpa George. </HTML>

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