The Virginia Stage Company presents “A Merry Little Christmas” and its sequel “A Sherlock Carol” in repertory at the Wells Theater in Norfolk, meaning an original and sequel are performed in the same season – and in some cases, the same day.
Both productions will continue throughout December.
“A Merry Little Christmas” takes a traditional staging of the classic “A Christmas Carol” story, with added elements of self-referential humor and some new interpretations of the original characters. “A Sherlock Carol” explores a similarly iconic character - Sherlock Holmes - with the added thrill of a murder mystery and the development of many characters from the first play.
Audience members can spot jokes that carry into the sequel, design details continued and motifs that draw beautiful parallels between the two plays, especially in the main characters, Ebineezer Scrooge and Sherlock Holmes.
New York-based playwright Mark Shanahan flew to Norfolk to watch both plays live for the first time opening week in early December.
“It’s really something to see it all come together,” he said. “I rewrote (the plays) a little bit … to address Norfolk, to address the Wells Theater and the history of the theater and the ghosts that are here, and also to talk to this particular audience.”
Shanahan also included a scene about sailors at sea from Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” because “people know what it’s like to be separated at Christmas.”
Shanahan, who joined the student matinee of “A Merry Little Christmas,” watched the children react to the show with laughter, squeals, gasps, and tears.
“They see Scrooge as this mean, cantankerous guy, but they’re rooting for him. I think adults root for him too because it’s a cautionary tale,” Shanahan said. “‘Have I gotten a little Scrooge-ish this year? Did the things that happened to me this year make me hard-hearted—can I open back up and try to use my time wisely?’”
And, Shanahan said, the experience of being moved and provoked by a performance is what proves vital for children and adults alike.
“We know that the performing arts exercises empathy in people,” he said. “We know empirically that empathy is a muscle that can be strengthened … the theater can provide that.”
Presenting the two productions in repertory means that although both plays can be watched independently, they are ultimately one storyline that includes the same cast, characters and staging.
“It’s an incredibly ambitious task,” Shanahan said about the Virginia Stage Company’s decision to show both plays this season. “One that I never expected anyone to be insane enough to take on.”
A schedule of performances and tickets for “A Sherlock Carol” and “A Merry Little Christmas Carol” is available on Virginia Stage Company’s website.
