Bah, Humbug

If there’s only going to be one production of “A Christmas Carol” in Ventura County--some years, there have been as many as four--it’s somehow fitting that it’s that of the Santa Susana Repertory Company. The group has been producing the play at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza for the last several years, after stints at other venues in the general environs.

The group has been using a new adaptation, by James Egan, for a few years, and Walter Koenig is in his second year as Scrooge, after shifts by Hamilton Camp and Eric Christmas, among others.

The story remains close to Charles Dickens’ novel (sort of like a flocked Christmas tree: attractive enough, and perhaps preferable to some, but noticeably different from the real thing). Egan and director Allan Hunt have added a few “improvements,” ranging from a character who acts as storyteller to moving Jacob Marley’s ghostly face from Scrooge’s door knocker to the Hyde Park Gate.

It’s a sign that the story’s a bit protracted if, when Scrooge delivers a huge turkey to the Cratchit family, a member of the audience wonders distractedly how long it’s going to take the already overworked Mrs. Cratchit, who is sitting at the Christmas table, to prepare the new bird for the oven, and how many hours will pass while it cooks.

The biggest change from productions before he signed on, though, is Koenig’s interpretation of Scrooge: much more dour, at Friday’s show, at least, than Camp or Christmas had been. By the time the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come has made his silent exit, Koenig’s Scrooge is much more animated than earlier in the performance; but previous interpretations, showing Scrooge reveling in his cantankerous attitude from the beginning, are more fun to watch. This fellow’s just a dud, not the mean-spirited prototypical misanthrope responsible for an enduring moratorium on mothers naming their newborn sons “Ebenezer.”

Director Hunt plays Bob Cratchit sincerely, although he looks a bit well fed and clothed for the part; Santa Susana artistic director Lane Davies appears as Christmas Present; and Ruth Cordell plays Christmas Past, wearing an over-the-top outfit and wig that look (perhaps to disguise the fact that she also plays Mrs. Cratchit) as if they were borrowed from Glinda, the good witch from “The Wizard of Oz.” Of the remaining large cast (several members of which play at least two roles), Robert Naim is especially notable as the Story Teller.

Rick Rhodes contributes an original, prerecorded score, with the cast singing a couple of Christmas carols. Dani Brown is the choreographer, Don Nelson designed the costumes, Alan Toll designed the set, and carolers in period dress attempt to churn up holiday spirit in the theater lobby.

Somehow, though, after seeing the Moorpark Melodrama (and last year’s Camarillo Community Theater) versions of “‘A Christmas Carol,” with Tiny Tim stepping out to sing “Tiptoe Through the Tulips,” it’s hard to take the holiday warhorse as straight as this perfectly respectable and worthwhile production.

DETAILS

“A Christmas Carol” concludes this weekend at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza’s Scherr Forum, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. in Thousand Oaks. Performances are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $22 to $25 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster (583-8700) or at the Civic Arts Plaza’s box office. For further information, call 449-2787.

*

*

A week ago tonight, the Marquie Dinner Theater was the site of a birthday celebration for Shirley Lorraine, who divides her time among cowboy poetry, magic, writing and a day job. As happy an occasion as the birthday party was, it rang bittersweet as the last theater-related event in the venue.

Expecting to move to a new location early next year, owner Paul Marquie had announced a season of plays. But various unforeseen problems involving the old and new landlords have led Marquie and his wife, Judy, to dissolve the theater and their catering business entirely. Ironically, by all accounts the Marquie was making money.

The theater provided a service to a specific and appreciative audience; it, the jam-filled cookies, and especially the Marquies and their staff will be missed.

Todd Everett can be reached at teverett@concentric.net.