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A Christmas Carol
14th December, 2017 @ 7:30 pm - 7th January, 2018 @ 10:00 pm
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After the sell-out successes of The Jungle Book, Robin Hood & His Merry Men, and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Barbican Theatre and Le Navet Bete are excited to present their latest co-produced Christmas show, a joyful, comic re-telling of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol from 14 December to 7 January.
The inimitable Le Navet Bete are back for their seventh Christmas in Plymouth with their hilarious and unique version of the greatest Christmas ghost story ever told, co-produced with Barbican Theatre. A festive physical comedy treat for the whole family featuring all the much loved Dickensian characters plus a few extra for good measure – it is Christmas after all!
A Christmas Carol will be performed at Plymouth’s much loved Plymouth Athenaeum. This follows the hugely successful 10 performance run of Le Navet Bete’s Dracula: The Bloody Truth at the theatre earlier this year; the first theatrical performance on it’s stage since it was mothballed in 2009.
A further reason for moving the Christmas show to The Plymouth Athenaeum was due to last year’s The Jungle Book selling out so quickly, with extensive waiting lists and many left disappointed. The Plymouth Athenaeum has a larger 332 capacity, which is more than double that of the Barbican Theatre, so we hope that everyone who wants to see the show this year can!
Sheila Snellgrove, Barbican Theatre’s CEO says:
“Le Navet Bete and Barbican Theatre’s Christmas productions have become an institution for theatre audiences in Plymouth as evidenced by the increase in audience numbers year on year. Following our very successful run of Dracula at The Plymouth Athenaeum this April and sell out Christmas shows over the past few years, we are excited about reaching even more new audiences with our Christmas production at this wonderful larger theatre.”
Al Dunn from Le Navet Bete says:
“We first met Barbican Theatre in 2008 and we’ve worked closely with them ever since on a number of very successful co-productions. This year we’re looking forward to bringing our joyful, hilarious and version of Dickens’ classic Christmas tale to the Athenaeum. We feel privileged to be the company that has re-opened the Athenaeum for theatre performances. We’ve got a great team working on the production including a fantastic designer who is working on an incredible set”.
A Christmas Carol will be directed by nationally recognised writer and director John Nicholson. We are very excited to be working with John, founder of Peepolykus and one of the UK’s most exciting theatre companies. John is described as “the comedy director of the moment” and has worked with Le Navet Bete on a number of productions. Most recently John directed and co-wrote their critically acclaimed Dracula: The Bloody Truth.
John says
“A Christmas Carol encapsulates the essence of Christmas – when the sun has travelled as far south as it will go, when the longest nights of the year draw us to the fireside, and when we allow ourselves to believe in miracles and visitations. It’s also a time for laughter. And in the world of comic theatre they don’t come much funnier that the joyously ridiculous Le Navet Bete. Barbican Theatre is unique in the way it supports companies like Le Navet Bete so it’s a pleasure to be working with them.”
A total of 32 performances will be held at The Plymouth Athenaeum from 14 December 2017 to 7 January 2018 (including matinee and evening performances).
As ever tickets are great value at just £16 for full and £14 for concessions (under 16s, over 60s, students and disabled). There is also a great value family ticket at just £50 (for two full and two under 16s). Plus, if you’re coming with a large party there’s a group saver discount: buy 10 tickets get the 11th FREE! (additional booking fees apply)