Houston Christian’s A Christmas Carol

On the stage standing is Adam Kobs and sitting is Remy Garfield. The white figure sitting in the chair is Rebecca Glenister who played the ghost of Christmas past. (Photo: Kai Mosvold)

I made it to my first-ever theater production on opening night of Charles Dickens’s "A Christmas Carol" and it was amazing. Although it made me very regretful that I have not attended more theater productions at my time at Houston Christian, I am very thankful I got to attend in my opinion one of the best student plays I have ever seen. 

Opening night was as cold as Ebenezer Scrooge himself. As I walked in the foyer of the black box I was immediately transported to the 19th century with a variety of props scattered such as a vintage sled, a fireplace, Christmas trees, and a multitude of candle lanterns. When I stepped inside the actual blackbox theater, I felt as if I was a part of the play. There were two small stages in the middle of the room and rows of seats in each side of the room filled to the brim with eager eyes. Mr. Linhart, the play’s director, and junior, Renee Rapier, the assistant director, welcomed the audience to the show and the play shorty began after.

The play opened with the ghost of Jacob Marley, who was played by Junior, Remy Garfield, warning the audience of Scrooge’s impending fate unless he changes his ways. After the eerie warning, the audience was introduced to Scrooge, who was played by senior, Collin McGrath, and shown the cruel, greedy man Scrooge is on an everyday basis. When Scrooge returns to his home, he is visited by his former partner and now ghost Jacob Marley who warns him of the three ghosts that will come to haunt Scrooge. Throughout the play Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Christmas past, present, and future. The three ghosts show Scrooge certain events that happened, happening, or will happen and these events make him change his ways, and he becomes filled with the Christmas spirit. 

All the students put a tremendous amount of effort and dedication into their roles, and I thought Collin McGrath did a fabulous job and really embodied the character of Ebenezer Scrooge. Every actor really showed just how hard they worked through their flawless performance. Not only did the actors do a phenomenal job, but the stage crew made sure the show went off without a hitch and made for a smooth performance.