By Michele Markarian
“Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol”. Adapted by David H. Bell, Paul T. Couch and Curt Wollan. Book by David H. Bell. Music and Lyrics by Dolly Parton. Directed by Curt Wollen. Presented by Red Tail Entertainment and Paul T. Couch, Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston Street, Boston through December 29.
“Dolly Parton’s seated in our row,” my friend texted to me as I arrived at the Colonial Theatre in downtown Boston to see the world premiere of “Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol”. Indeed, the diminutive, pretty woman in the bright red dress was Dolly Parton! This was excitement enough, and the curtain hadn’t even gone up yet.
“Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol” is a retelling, Tennessee-style, of the Ebenezer Scrooge story, complete with three ghosts and a visit from Marley (Billy Butler, in a dual role), performed with original songs by Dolly Parton. The book humanizes Scrooge in a way that I haven’t seen before. The son of an uneducated miner, Scrooge (Peter Colburn) is treated poorly by his father for finishing school and not wanting to work in the mine. When a burgeoning love affair goes sour on Christmas Day, the young Scrooge hardens his heart against Christmas and most of humanity. It’s not until he traces his life with the Ghost of Christmas Past (Mary Tanner), sees his present with the Ghost of Christmas Present (Brian Hull) and sees what looms ahead with the Ghost of Christmas Future (fiddler Caitlin Nicol-Thomas) that he has his epiphany.
The musicianship in the show is strong, especially the women – Tanner (who has a lovely, playful stage presence), Julia Getz (Mrs. Cratchit/Mrs. Fustbunch) and Brittney Santoro (Fanny/Sadie). Lee Fiskness’s lighting design really enhances the action, particularly the Hell sequence when Marley comes to visit (John Dietrich’s choreography and Linda Roethke’s costume design help make this one of the more dramatic scenes in the show). Jonathan Acorn is appealing as young Scrooge, and Colburn is just terrific as the older version.
The main problem I had with the show is the book, which, despite some good moments, didn’t quite add up. Can one really fault Scrooge for wanting an education so he wouldn’t be like his angry dad? And when the unscrupulous Marley attempts to entangle young Ebenezer in his potential financial debacle and Scrooge turns the tables, can we blame him? As he says, it’s business. I get it. And while there’s a speech about how awful it is for children to live in poverty, the impoverished in this version seem pretty cheerful, chopping up heirloom furniture for firewood and leafing happily through the Sear Roebuck catalogue while calling it a “wish book”. These townspeople are just so unfailingly good and cheerful, except when it comes to the glimpse of the future, where we see them laughing at Scrooge’s funeral. I could understand if they were angry, but laughing? And treacly lines like, “Music always sounds sweeter in a church” just don’t make sense. The feeling of nostalgia the show attempts to create for the mountains of Tennessee is one that most of us can’t relate to.
That said, there were some lovely moments. “Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol” shows us a community that, for the most part, takes care of each other. The cast’s onstage affection for one another seemed real – indeed, while Tanner was gleefully dancing in one scene, I could see one of her castmates watching from the wings; the look on her face was pure delight. “All children are his children”, says the Ghost of Christmas Present to Scrooge, who can’t understand why his nephew Fred (Acorn) feels responsible for a sickly neighbor’s kid. And at the end, when Scrooge says to Fred, “I’ve had this pocket watch a long time and – well, I want to keep it in the family”, both Scrooge and I got teary. For tickets and info, go to: http://www.emersoncolonialtheatre.com
