01 Dec Theatrical Performance of Scrooge
Today is 1st of December and so the countdown to Christmas is here! Celebrate Christmas early with a performance of Scrooge by theatre company LAMPS Collective on Tuesday 5 December at 7:30pm in the Café. Join us for traditional pantomime fun with this musical version of Charles Dickens’s classic story and a real Christmas message. Book your free ticket now via the Eventbrite page. A funny and entertaining evening to get you in the festive spirit!
Read below for an exclusive Q&A with Creative Director of LAMPS Collective Chris Matthewman so you can get an idea of what to expect from the show.
Firstly, could you tell us what LAMPS Collective is?
LAMPS is a collection of writers, musicians, actors, directors and other arty types that get together on a project by project basis to create, produce and perform.
Some people might be put off by the idea of a Christian theatre company so can audiences from any background still enjoy your productions?
I think that almost everything ever created by anyone, in some way reflects their view of the world and what we produce is no different. Having said that, everything that LAMPS produces is made with our audience in mind and it is always our hope and our aim that our shows can be appreciated by folks from a wide range of backgrounds, cultures or beliefs.
With cuts being made to many UK arts organisations, it seems that theatre, music and the arts should be valued more than ever and particularly with the work you do in communicating the universal values of faith, hope and love. What is your response to this?
I think that art in its many forms is uniquely placed in its ability to provoke both thought and emotion.
We really want what we do to be enjoyable and entertaining, but if it also challenges the way people think on a particular issue or stirs them to action in some way, then I think that is also valid and good.
Tell us about the production of Scrooge you will be performing for us. What can we expect? It’s certainly not going to be a stereotypical theatre show!
We hope not. Charles Dickens was a brilliant writer and very humorous but he also had something to say about the world. We hope that our production continues in that vein and that like many of the shows that we seek to create, there will plenty of humour and song to accompany the story.
The show is performed by a cast of three professional actors who end up performing about 18 roles between them and their is the odd cheeky puppet thrown in as well.
Our residents come from all over the world so how can audiences prepare themselves for two rather British traditions – the Christmas panto and Dickens’ classic story!
One of the things that I really like about the classic British panto is that it is generally written for all ages to enjoy and engage with. Our version of Scrooge is no exception to this and although we stray somewhat from the book, we hope that what we have done with this timeless, very Christmassy and very British tale, is still true to the spirit of the story.
Finally, why should people come to your performance of Scrooge?
I think that it was the aim of Charles Dickens himself to produce something that was funny, festive and entertaining, as well as having something to say.
Hopefully, our retelling of his story will also do just that.
Many thanks Chris for taking the time to answer these questions! Do come along for this special one-off performance!