A Twisted Carol

A Twisted Carol:  A Jukebox Musical is an adaption of the classic Scrooge story written by On Stage Productions Executive Director Robert Harrelson. Twisted Carol was written in 2001 and performed in 2003 in Orlando, Florida. The show was then revived Off Broadway in December of 2006 and produced by the Roy Arias Studios and Theatres on West 43rd Street, New York, NY. Harrelson wrote Twisted Carol because he loved the original story of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and he wanted to explore the untold aspects of the traditional tale.  Including puns from Harrelson’s life and his love of the Swedish super group Abba, Twisted Carol is entertaining and campy– jukebox comedy fun at its finest.

Set at Christmastime, Twisted Carol intertwines traditional Dickens characters and some fun new ones.   They all try to make the most of out the holidays, despite the curmudgeonly Ebenezer Scrooge.   In this tale, Scrooge’s housekeeper Effie is in love with him despite the efforts of her 3 best friends, the Effettes, to convince her that she should continue to “shop around” for someone more deserving. With a little assistance from the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, Scrooge learns he can actually love someone—and maybe even Christmas!

The production stars Peter Ullsperger as Ebenezer Scrooge; Rachel Rizzuti as Effie, his dedicated housekeeper; Mike Vinson as Scrooge’s business partner Jacob Marley; and a strong ensemble that includes the Effettes, Scrooge’s Christmas-loving nephew Fred and his wife Mary, and Dickens favorite family, the Cratchets.  The production is written and directed by Robert Harrelson with choreography by resident choreographer Melissa Raynor Berry.