CalArtians’ Twisted, Immersive ‘A Christmas Carol’ To Be Staged at Local Brewery

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Image courtesy The Speakeasy Society.

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From left to right: Michael Pignatelli, Genevieve Gearhart and Jess Reed. | Photo: The Speakeasy Society

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Poster courtesy The Speakeasy Society.

For one night only on Monday (Dec. 9), Los Angeles theater company The Speakeasy Society presents its latest theater production, Ebenezer: An Immersive Christmas Carol. The show based on the Charles Dickens classic features CalArts student and alumni performers interacting with audience members at the hidden bar at Golden Road Brewing in the Atwater Village neighborhood.

The show will be performed in rotating one-hour cycles allowing audiences to follow multiple characters and story lines of Speakeasy’s version of the story, which was adapted by directors Matthew Bamberg-Johnson (Theater MFA 13), Genevieve Gearhart (Theater MFA 13) and Julianne Just (Theater MFA 12). Attendees will be able to order a beer or a burger from the hidden bar (aka Chloe’s pub) and travel freely through the space during the performance.

“For this version, the quintessential characters of Dickens’ story are reimagined in a darkly comic modern context,” said Bamberg-Johnson via email. More about the experience from producer John Henningsen:

[The directors] crafted “Ebenezer” around the Golden Road Brewing’s space. Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol seemed an ideal fit for the old world feel of Chloe’s pub. By modernizing elements of the story, inviting the audience to move through the piece and examine untold story elements more closely, it revitalizes the experience of this classic story for a contemporary audience. The experience is active, not passive, which enables audience members to create a sensory connection to the space, characters, event, food, and drink of the world that we’re crafting.

The production features the following performers:

In addition to co-directing, Gearhart is also credited as choreographer. Stage manager Andrew Lia (Theater MFA 13), scenic consultant Aubree Lynn (Theater BFA 14), lighting consultant Will Sammons, costume designer Amy Millan (Theater MFA 14), music director Chris Porter (Music MFA 09) and musician Jacob Loeb (Theater BFA 13) round out the crew.

Admission is limited and staggered. Pre-show dinner, drinks and live music begin at 7 pm. The action begins at 8 pm (SOLD OUT) with additional admission at 8:30, 9 and 9:30 pm. The “grand finale” begins at 11 pm.