The story of how the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge transforms from a cold-hearted curmudgeon to someone who embraces the joys of the holiday season with a hearty “Merry Christmas” has become a tradition for many around McKinney this time of year. Since 2006, the McKinney Repertory Theatre (MRT) has produced Andrew B. Harris’ one-hour adaptation of A Christmas Carol at the McKinney Performing Arts Center, attracting repeat attendees and actors alike. This year’s edition is no different and runs through December 14.
The annual show began out of necessity. On the heels of directing the opening show at the McKinney Performing Arts Center, a successful production of To Kill a Mockingbird, Harris recalls how he faced an unexpected challenge in its follow-up. Harris, an award-winning author of two theater books and a UNT professor emeritus, was told MRT only had its performance space for two days but needed to produce four productions of A Christmas Carol to break even on its costs. The rest is holiday history. Harris says he “did everything except wash the bottles and mop up the floors” to get the show on its feet.
Despite its shortened runtime, the resulting adaptation brings to life the key moments from the story. The three ghosts still visit Scrooge. They still teach him what happens when you “Bah Humbug!” through the holidays. Harris has since recently gone on to publish his adaptation of A Christmas Carol, complete with his own original illustrations based on the cast of the 2023 MRT production.
“We love that this is a family tradition for so many people,” says Jennifer Lee, the production’s assistant director. She and her family are no exception. Lee performed as Mrs. Cratchit in a past MRT production, and her parents, Doug and Marilyn Latham, have been instrumental in bringing A Christmas Carol to the stage over the past six years. Doug eventually became the show’s lead director for the past two years, with Marilyn serving as one of last year’s co-directors.
During the last production, however, Doug was diagnosed with cancer and died before the show opened. Marilyn will serve as this year’s director alongside Lee, a mother-and-daughter partnership that will pay tribute to Doug by including elements of his work throughout the show. This includes using sound design and projection elements he created, as well as his original curtain speech. “I think he’s looking down on me and Jennifer right now because we’re doing it together,” Latham says.
As past productions have done over the years, Latham and Lee have looked to add new elements to the show. “Every year, we’ve just added something that wasn’t there before, and it just seems to get better and better,” Latham says. The 2024 show will have a fireplace in the Cratchit house that will hold an actual fire, among other added set pieces. Expect an 1800s stove and a new desk for Scrooge’s office. In addition, the theater had added new special effects as part of redesigned entrances for the three ghosts. “Each ghost is going to have a smoke effect and lighting,” Lee says. “We’re trying to do some things with (Scrooge’s) bed to put things in motion and make their entrances more grand.”
They’ve also tweaked an added segment during the show that Harris included as a nod to one of Charles Dickens’ primary inspirations behind writing A Christmas Carol. “What motivated Dickens to write the novella in 1843 was that he was so upset about child labor and the fact that these kids didn’t have Christmas,” Harris says, referring to what led him to include an added scene featuring Dickens himself at the show’s onset.
The new tweaks and additions over the years have pushed the show a little over Harris’ original hourlong runtime, but Latham says they’ve worked to trim it back down. Regardless, she says the new additions in 2024 are “what we dreamed about for years.”
“We want people to share the joy of the holidays,” Harris says. It’s the kind of feeling that Latham and Lee have already experienced by having the chance to work together on this production. “It’s wonderful to have the time to spend together,” Lee says, a sentiment shared by Latham. “She is my rock, and for us to be able to do this together has meant a lot,” Latham says.
Harris sees it as a reflection of the “essence of A Christmas Carol,” calling the holidays a time to “take stock not just of what you own, but the people who you share life with and who you’re touched by their presence.”
“This show meant so much to Doug, and he brought family to the center of what he was doing when he put the show on,” Harris says. “You could feel that. It was palpable. And that’s the joy of live theater.”
The McKinney Repertory Theatre will stage A Christmas Carol each weekend through December 14. More information is here.
Author
