The Vibrant Spirit of Scrooges Past

The problem with a lot of Scrooges is simple, really. In this season of “A Christmas Carol”s wide and far, you tend to find Scrooges that aren’t Scrooges at all; they’re just character actors having a little too much fun playing a mean guy. The Charles Dickens character’s harshness, loneliness and eventual joyous transformation are conveyed as a series of winks, aimed at an audience all too familiar with the narrative.

So it’s a very pleasant surprise to see how well Hal Landon Jr. fares as Ebenezer S., in the annual South Coast Repertory staging.

This is SCR veteran Landon’s 22nd shot at the role. Twenty-two! In a row! What must the long, lean Landon be thinking up there, in his nightcap, cowering before the ghost of Jacob Marley, or revisiting the Fezziwig ball, or dancing about with glee on Christmas morning? Wait, that sounded like last year’s line reading ... or was it ‘97?

Along with Landon, director John-David Keller is also a 22-year veteran of SCR’s “Carol,” adapted by Jerry Patch. It’s a most stage-worthy adaptation, satisfyingly paced, with generous portions of the Dickens original. Patch makes full emotional sense of the scenes between Young Scrooge (Jonathan Del Arco) and his intended, Belle (Julia Coffey). And without a heavy hand, the SCR adaptation keeps the social reform message of Dickens’ tale in the forefront. “God see us through this winter,” says a London street merchant, early on.

The line is there for a reason. If you don’t see the life Scrooge is leading, and the lives of those he conveniently ignores until the spirits descend, you don’t have “A Christmas Carol” in its entirety. I’d quibble with the dialects (American, rather than British). But SCR’s take has heart, grit and a clear sense of itself. And far from dogging an annual assignment, Landon proves his mettle.

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“A Christmas Carol,” South Coast Repertory, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Tuesdays-Fridays, 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.; Sundays, noon and 4 p.m. Exceptions: today, 11:30 a.m. (no 7:30 p.m. show); Dec. 23, 4 p.m. (no noon show). Additional performances: Dec. 19, 2:30 p.m., and Dec. 24, noon and 4 p.m. Ends Dec. 24. $25-$42. (714) 708-5555. Running time: 2 hours.

Hal Landon Jr. ... Scrooge

David Whalen ... Bob Cratchit

Timothy Landfield ... Spirit of Christmas Present

Richard Doyle ... Spirit of Christmas Past

Don Took ... Jacob Marley’s Ghost

Julia Coffey ... Belle

Howard Shangraw... Fred

Adapted by Jerry Patch. Directed by John-David Keller. Scenic designer Cliff Faulkner. Costumes by Dwight Richard Odle. Lighting by Donna and Tom Ruzika. Sound by Garth Hemphill. Musical director Dennis Castellano. Production manager Jeff Gifford.