The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Department of Theatre and Dance is proud to present the Guthrie Theatre’s version of “A Christmas Carol”, a telling of the Charles Dickens classic Christmas story from 1843 adapted for the stage in 1996 by Barbara Field. This production was directed by UWL theater professor Dr. Mary Leonard, and was put together by 40 UWL student actors, seven child actors from the La Crosse community, 25 directors/designers/stage managers, and 86 scene shop/costume shop student staff members. Performances are Dec. 2-3 and 8-10 at 7:30 p.m. with Sunday matinees Dec. 4 and 11 at 2:00 p.m. in the Toland Theatre, Truman T. Lowe Center for the Arts.

Taking place on Christmas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge is swept away by The Three Ghosts: Christmas Past, Christmas Present, and Christmas Future. On his journey, he sees old memories he had forgotten, a present-day that he is wasting, and a near future that he fears. In the end, Scrooge learns the errors of his stingy ways, and he comes to appreciate the true meaning of the Christmas season to avoid being dragged down for the rest of his life by the burden of a heavy heart.

UWL senior performance major Mason Laney plays Ebenezer Scrooge. When asked about what he hopes the audience takes away from seeing “A Christmas Carol”, he said, “Normally I would say that I hope that they learn a lesson, but this time I hope that they walk out of here happy and in the Christmas spirit. I used to be that one guy who didn’t like Christmas because it’s all about money. Now, especially after working on this show, I think it’s kind of nice to have this holiday.”

Laney took the stage as Scrooge during his senior year of high school, and he said that he is excited to reprise the role. “I’ve learned a lot now that I’m a senior here, and I feel that I can really do it justice this time,” said Laney. He also said that he is grateful to the department for giving him the opportunity to lead a UWL production, especially one as important to UWL as this one.

Putting on “A Christmas Carol” is a tradition in the UWL Department of Theatre and Dance. The show gets put on every four years. The only exception was this past year. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been five years since the show was last put on at UWL. This is Dr. Leonard’s sixth time directing “A Christmas Carol” since her arrival at UWL. She said, “It’s a real time to bring our department together because almost every single major and minor is involved somehow whether they’re running around in the makeup room or in the costume shop or in the scene shop or in the show. When I see the curtain call at the end of the night I think ‘Wow, look at all those people! Isn’t this fantastic?’ It’s quite an adventure. It’s a little treat we give the community from our department.”

Dr. Leonard said that part of the allure of Christmas classics like “A Christmas Carol” lies in traditions like these. She said, “I think a lot of people make a tradition out of it when they come to see a holiday show or they want to do this for a treat for themselves. I hope that they will feel satisfied when they get in, and even if they’ve seen this show or movie a thousand different ways in different times in different places, you still really want to feel good. I want the audience to enjoy it, of course, even though they know the ending!”

About the work that went into the production, Dr. Leonard said, “I think the audience will be amazed by how much talent we have here in our students. And it’s not just actors, though we have fantastic performers. I’m grateful to have my students every day in acting classes. They’re so good, and they’re growing. But there is artistry that we have with all of our students. We have a student lighting director who’s outstanding, and our stage manager is an amazing person who is so good at what they do. And then the individuals who made the props with beautiful artistry. It’s a big picture of how much talent we have in this building. It’s pretty wonderful.”

UWL senior musical theater major Adam Bloom plays Bob Cratchit on stage, but he said that a big part of his role was located backstage where he worked as a shop staff member that built pieces of the set. He said, “The hardest part was building the darn thing. Even though this is a set we have used in previous years, we are still down to the wire on building it. There’s a lift that we built to bring Marley out of the floor, and we have been building it every single day trying to get it to work. I can’t imagine how long it took for the people who built it originally.”

Bloom said that UWL’s production of “A Christmas Carol” gives him a sense of community. He said, “What I’ve always heard about ‘A Christmas Carol’ is that it’s a huge thing for the community of UWL. This is the one show a year where things are going to sell out. I was just trying to buy tickets for my family, and they were almost sold out already for most shows. And theater can be such a uniting thing because the community loves coming to this. Everyone is coming to it. Especially something recurring like this where everyone says ‘I’ve got to mark this on my calendar four years in advance’”.

Tickets for “A Christmas Carol” are on sale online at www.uwlax.edu/theatre-arts. Tickets are also available for purchase in person at the box office in the lobby of the Truman T. Lowe Center for the Arts or by calling 608.785.6696. Box office hours are Monday through Friday 1:00-3:00 p.m. or one hour before each performance. Tickets are $22 for adults; $20 for seniors and non-UWL students, and $8 for UWL students with ID.

IF YOU GO
WHO: The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Department of Theatre and Dance

WHAT: “A Christmas Carol”

WHEN: Dec. 2-3 and 8-10 at 7:30 p.m. with Sunday matinees Dec. 4 and 11 at 2:00 p.m.

WHERE: Toland Theater, Center for the Arts, 333 N. 16th Street, La Crosse, WI 54601

COST: $22 for adults; $20 for seniors and non-UWL students, and $8 for UWL students with ID. Tickets are on sale online at www.uwlax.edu/theatre-arts. Tickets are also available for purchase in person at the box office in the lobby of the Truman Lowe Center for the Arts or by calling 608.785.6696. Box office hours are Monday through Friday 1:00-3:00 p.m. or one hour before each performance.

CAST: Erik Berg, Linnea Lerwick, Lucas Kolbe, Matilda Parmeter, Cooper Koepke, Rosie Manson, Mason Laney, Adam Bloom, Anna Kral, Will Nysse, Danielle Hoffman, Kira Hirsch, Eamon Moran, Louden Ferguson, Ellie Augustine, Julia Maynard, Caroline Thompson, Paige Huling, Cameron Cavaiuolo, Kenadi Tossing, Ben Parmeter, Maeve Moran, Ryan Hustedt, Caitlin Elenteny, Taylor Rammer, Josh Kaiser, Bella Kral, Jake Gesteland, Ellie Hemming, Gavin Muller, Noah Mastaglio, Bao Xiong, Harley Pippenger, Talia Mentjes, Tracie Hodgdon, Abby Muma, Alyssa Meissner, Anna Montgomery, Val Fish, Anna Halvorsen, Paige Verbsky, Eddie Doerr, Nicholas Bilyeu, Kaelee Coonen, Dzhamilia Ismailova, Scarlett Miller, Emma Kohl

PRODUCTION TEAM: Katie Krueger, Julia Milne, Ryan Morstatter (assistant stage managers), Val Fish, August Jennings (assistant prop designers), Brodyn Byington, Sage Goetsch, August Jennings, Tracy Joe, Sam Kallis, Brevin Kruse, Scarlett Miller, Ryan Morstatter (assistant technical directors), Nic Barilar (dialect coach), Ashley Dobrogosz (choreographer), Ben Golden (master electrician), Laurie Kincman (production manager), Michelle Collyar (costume shop manager), Megan Morey (scene shop supervisor), Mason Reuvers (light board operator), Amanda Visger (sound board operator), Thomas Hall, Jackson Sharp (follow spot operators), Hailey Kluck, Katie Last, Amber Meyers, River Podjasek, Avery Weston (run crew), Alexa Boardman, Brooklyn Lewis, Lily Post, Emily Riley, Elin Voegeli (costume run crew), Brodyn Byington, Tracy Joe, Dana Leis, Linnea Lerwick (light/sound shop staff), Marty Bond, Leo Chavolla, Calix Denny, Madison Ehler, Garrett Fisher, Tanor Gehrke, Kaj Jensen, Mason Maren, Katelyn Myers, Sydney Nguyen, Mason Reuvers, Brayden Rosenow, Alivia Seibel, Bridget Torud, Gabby Zinnel (light hang/focus crew), Allison Fladhammer, Jack Hehli, Kamryn Schueller (publicity crew), Laura Felde, August Jennings, Carson Kreger, Talia Mentjes, Jess Miller (props/paint staff), Kaj Jensen, Katriana Wolf (props/paint crew), Jake Gesteland, Sage Goetsch, Tracie Hodgdon, Linnea Lerwick, Irene Swain, Elin Voegeli (costume stop staff), Andi Brockman, Sophie Denure, Olivia Gscheidmeier, Amber Meyers, Grace Repinski, Kylie Stockton (cosume shop crew), Joe Anderson (poster design/cast photos), Angela Stadler (house manager), Caitlin Elenteny, Chloe Hart, Paige Verbsky (box office), Max Byington, Katelyn Graf, Madeline Grethel, Genevieve Payne, Iversin Polbitski, Elizabeth Scheerer, Haley Schwind (front of house), Krista Shulka (lobby display), Adam Bloom, Brodyn Byington, August Jennings, Sam Kallis (scene shop staff), Chloe Beckman, Aiden Benbrooks, Jenna Brockman, Trevor Daffinson, Deng Deng, Isaac Djuamcjamd, Ethan Edberg, Jessica Ehlers, Grant Freeman, Juan Garcia, Hannah Gehrke, Spencer Hiatt, Julia Haas, Eli Haufle, Sam Kasten, Vihaan Kochard, Macey Kraisinger, Sara Lesniewski, Murelle Lund, Mason Maren, Jovinelle Miguel, Jack Morrison, Francis O’Connor, Eduardo Palacio, Ellie Pankratz, Cameron Seebruch, Jared Smit, Josephine Stanlick, Magdalena Stauffer, Charles Steck, Anna Strand, Brigid Straub, Bryce Thomaschefsky, Connor Wheeler (scene shop crew).