What: Christmas Carol Project
When: Wednesday, Dec. 15 & Thursday, Dec. 16, 8 p.m.
Where: Millennium Place
Cost: $28 adults, $24 students/seniors, $22 WAC members, $12 kids under the age of six
It's a Christmas classic: the Victorian tale of Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit and crotchety old Ebenezer Scrooge, who undergoes an ethical and emotional transformation after a series of supernatural visitations from his former business partner, Jacob Marley, and the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present, and Future.
In fact, countless versions of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol have been made over the years - the 19 th century novella has been made into cartoons, films, an opera and ballet, a Broadway musical, a BBC mime production starring Marcel Marceau, and a 1947 chamber orchestra composition.
And in 1996, a group of musicians living in Edmonton decided to get in on the action, launching the Christmas Carol Project.
John Armstrong is the mastermind behind what has turned into a beloved annual event in Edmonton. At the outset, Armstrong simply wanted to showcase the diverse talents of Edmonton's local music scene, and thought that A Christmas Carol would be the perfect vehicle.
"There are just so many strong character parts in it. There aren't many other stories that I can think of or that I've come across that have so many character parts that need to be fleshed out, and have so much to say and deliver," Armstrong explained.
"Often, you might have a protagonist and an antagonist and a couple of subsidiary or secondary characters. In this one, you've got Marley and Scrooge and the Cratchit and the three ghosts who all have their different messages that they bring."
The lineup, which features Canadian musicians Bill Bourne, Kevin Cook, Maria Dunn, Tom Roschkov, Terry Morrison, Al Brant, Dale Ladouceur and Bill Hobson, has remained essentially unchanged over the past 14 years.
"Bill Bourne is our Scrooge, and I think one of the first live performances I ever saw was Bill Bourne in the Sidetrack Café almost 30 years ago," Armstrong recalled. "Bill has won a couple of Juno awards and is just an amazing performer. I often say that music just flows through Bill."
Maria Dunn, another Juno-nominated musician, plays the part of Tiny Tim.
"She plays penny whistle and accordion and guitar and sings; she's just an amazing contributor to the project."
But this is just a seasonal production, and the cast members each have busy solo careers, releasing 30 to 40 projects independently.
"We get together in December, sometimes the end of November, and have a wonderful few weeks together, and then everyone goes back to their regular musician lives."
In addition to the seven singers/songwriters, the production also features a percussionist and a narrator, as well as Armstrong and a team of technicians working behind the scenes.
"The only thing that's changed has been the narrator," Armstrong said, adding that Dave Clarke has joined the production this year.
The narrator ties the musical elements of the production together, providing a unifying thread with text from the original novella to support the songs, ensuring that the show "retains its Dickensian flavour" from start to finish.
"We haven't really altered the storyline," Armstrong added. "Essentially, when we started, I made a summary of the story, broke it down and basically handed assignments to the performers that took on the different parts.
"Scrooge, for example, you need to present a song that establishes you as a miserly old curmudgeon. And then mid-way through the story, we need a song that conveys that you're scared, perplexed, you're going through the changes. And then by the end, we need a redemption song."
The overarching theme and plot remain intact.
"It's basically the story that everybody knows and loves, but told from different perspectives."
But the focal point is definitely the music.
"I think the main thing that people need to understand is that it's a musical; they shouldn't come in expecting the theatrical reenactment of Dickens's A Christmas Carol. It's really for people that enjoy great music, and essentially, it's the best eight-piece band you'll see playing 23 wonderful songs with seven singers/songwriters with amazing harmonies and accompaniment, and really, it's about the music."
They premiered the Christmas Carol Project at Edmonton's Catalyst Theatre in December 1996. Despite the bitterly cold (- 40 C) weather, the show was sold out. Then, they began taking the show on the road five years ago, traveling north to Whitehorse and Yellowknife, originally.
"It's funny, even in '96 when we were putting it together, before we'd even premiered our one little show, we all had high expectations for it. I think everyone just loves the story. The vehicle that we've chosen can do no wrong. And I think that we all still hope that one day, we're going to take it to London, England!"
Now entering their 15 th year of production, they've toured throughout the country, and produced a CD and even a television version of the show for Bravo in 2006. And for the first time, they're bringing the show to Whistler.
"It's been great. We have a lot of people that claim they've seen it every year - I kind of find that hard to believe, it's hard for me to believe that I've seen it every year!
"I think in some way, we've managed to hit on something that has the spirit of the holiday season without being overly Christmassy. I get a lot of people saying to me, 'I just dread the Christmas season and hate hearing the same songs in the malls,' and all that. But they say they come to our show, and for some reason it's a little cooler and hipper, but it still makes them walk out with a smile..."
And though it is a family-friendly production, Armstrong cautions against bringing children under the age of five, because the show is 90 minutes long and some of the characters, like the Ghost of Christmas Future, are quite frightening.
