Lake Park students take on Scrooge’s journey in ‘A Christmas Carol’

The Lake Park High School Theatre Department will be performing the Charles Dickens' holiday classic, “A Christmas Carol,” on Thursday to Saturday, Dec. 4-6, at the East Campus Dice Auditorium, 500 S. Medinah Road in Roselle.

The 90-minute production with one intermission is a timeless tale that features a dedicated cast of 38 students and a crew of 10 students.

Show times are 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4 and Saturday, Dec. 6. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, due to the coinciding “A Taste of the Arts” event sponsored by the Lake Park Educational Foundation.

General admission is $5 at the door for ages 13 or older, and free for senior citizens and Lake Park students with an ID.

The production tells the familiar tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, a man who has spent his adult life relentlessly prioritizing wealth and greed. His fate changes one Christmas Eve when he is visited by the ghost of his deceased business partner, Jacob Marley, who warns him of a worse eternal fate if he doesn't change his ways.

Scrooge is then visited by three spirits — the Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, and Future — who guide him through eye-opening scenes of his life, the current joys of others despite their poverty, and the bleak future of his own neglected death. These visits lead to Scrooge's dramatic repentance and transformation into a generous and kind-hearted man by Christmas Day.

Senior Matthew Tarullo narrates the Dickens’ tale, with junior Jack Colucci filling the role of Scrooge, senior Isaac Kaleta as Bob Cratchit, senior Java Lane as Marley’s ghost, junior Thalia Rhodes as the Ghost of Christmas Past, junior PJ Lavery as the Ghost of Christmas Present, and senior Phillip Howlett serving as the Ghost of Christmas Future.

In advance of the school’s final production this semester, theater director Erik Uppling answered some questions.

Q. Why did you choose “A Christmas Carol” for Lake Park High School's fall play?

To begin with, I just love this story. I love the many adaptations and film versions, I love the tradition, and this play is very near and dear to my heart. In 2003, I was cast as the Ghost of Christmas Present, and in that production, I not only met my dearest, closest friends that I still have today, but I also met my wife as well.

Setting my personal connection to this project aside, I truly love the story of Scrooge's redemption. It is truly the feel-good story that I think we could all use right now.

Q. For those who aren't familiar, please describe the plot.

“A Christmas Carol” is about the story of Ebenezer Scrooge who spent most of his adult life prioritizing wealth and greed at the expense of everyone around him. One night he is visited by his former business partner, Jacob Marley, who has been dead for the last seven years.

Jacob, shackled with the chains of his own transgressions, warns Ebenezer that if he doesn't turn his life around, he is destined to spend an eternity much worse than Jacob's.

Scrooge is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve: the Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. The spirits show him scenes from his past, the joys of others despite their poverty, and the bleak future of his own neglected death, leading him to repent and become a generous and kind man on Christmas Day.

Q. How many students are involved with the production?

There are 38 students in the cast and roughly 10 students on crew.

Q. How will your play differ from the original?

I have made some changes to the script we are using. The script calls for a narrator, and I took the character a step further and made him Charles Dickens himself. The show will now open with Dickens writing his famous story and thus we get propelled into his imagination as the events he writes come to life on stage. I have also added an exciting dance number during the Fezziwig scene. Who doesn't love a good Christmas dance?

Q. What were the most challenging aspects of getting this production together?

Scheduling I would say has been the most challenging. Our calendar is quite challenging as we will break for a week between our first tech rehearsal and our first dress rehearsal. It is a bit unorthodox, but sometimes we just have to work with the calendar we have been given.

Q. What did you find most rewarding?

I always find it so rewarding when students own a show. At some point, this show will no longer be mine to produce and direct, but the kids to perform and share with our community.

There is a bit of magic that happens during this transition where students look out for each other, hold each other accountable to everything we worked on, and lift the show to a level of production that certainly can compete with professional houses in the area.

Q. What were some of the best moments in putting together this production?

I always enjoy brainstorming with our tech director about the set and effects in the show. Watching Clarissa Consoli, assistant director and choreographer, work and teach the kids the Christmas waltz is a blast too.

Q. What do you think audiences will enjoy most about this play?

I think the audiences will enjoy the story. It is one of those that many will know the outcome and many have seen a version of it either on stage or in film. But it is one of those traditional stories that never gets old. I think audiences will really enjoy how committed these kids are to this project, and how talented they are in their telling.

Q. Anything else you'd like readers to know about this show?

I just hope that our audiences enjoy Scrooge's redemption. Again, our world is a bit crazy and upside down right now. Nothing like theater to swoop in and offer a bit of remedy and escape for what ails us right now. Also, if we are just in need of a good time at the theater, look no further.