A Christmas Carol
Cover of the playtext, featuringRhys Ifans as Scrooge
Written by	Jack Thorne
Based on	A Christmas Carol byCharles Dickens
Date premiered	20 November 2017 (2017-11-20)
Place premiered	The Old Vic,London
Original language	English
Setting	London

A Christmas Carol is a play byJack Thorne based on the1843 novella of the same name byCharles Dickens.

The adaptation was written forThe Old Vic inLondon where it premiered for the 2017 festive season and has returned every year since due to popular demand. It has also performed onBroadway (where it won 5Tony Awards), on a US tour and inMelbourne.

The adaptation premiered atThe Old Vic inLondon on 20 November 2017, running until 20 January 2018, starringRhys Ifans asEbenezer Scrooge. The production is directed byMatthew Warchus and designed byRob Howell, with music composed and orchestrated by Chris Nightingale. Notably, the production's design transforms the Old Vic proscenium stageinto the round with seating onstage and a walkway going through the centre of the stalls, creating a more immersive environment for the audience and the performers (who greet and hand outmince pies andsatsumas to members of the audience before the play begins). The ensemble musicians also play before the show starts. During the scene at the Christmas feast, a turkey and Brussel sprouts come down on a zipwire.

Following the success of the production, it was revived at the Old Vic for the 2018 season (24 November 2018 – 19 January 2019, starringStephen Tompkinson as Scrooge^[1]) before returning again for the 2019 season (23 November 2019 – 18 January 2020, starringPaterson Joseph as Scrooge^[2]).

The production was scheduled to return for the 2020 season from 21 November 2020 – 16 January 2021;^[3] however, due toCOVID-19 pandemic the production was performed as part of theOld Vic: In Camera series from 12 to 24 December 2020, being broadcast live from the empty Old Vic auditorium and streamed to audiences viaZoom.Andrew Lincoln starred as Scrooge, with many members of the cast from previous years at the Old Vic returning.

The production returned again (for audiences to attend in person) for the 2021 season (13 November 2021 to 8 January 2022 starringStephen Mangan as Scrooge^[4]) before returning for the 2022 season (12 November 2022 to 7 January 2023, starringOwen Teale as Scrooge) for the 2023 season (11 November 2023 to 6 January 2024 starringChristopher Eccleston as Scrooge.^[5]) and for the 2024 season (9 November 2024 to 4 January 2025, starringJohn Simm as Scrooge).^[6][7] The production returned for its ninth consecutive season from 12 November 2025 to 10 January 2026 starringPaul Hilton as Scrooge.

The production has raised £1.5 million globally for food poverty and deprivation-focused charities including Field Lane,The Felix Project, Coram Beanstalk,FoodCycle andFareShare.^[8]

For the 2019 season, The Old Vic production opened onBroadway at theLyceum Theatre from 7 November 2019, until 5 January 2020, starringCampbell Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge. Unlike the Old Vic, the production was adapted into a traditionalproscenium arch setting. The production was due to Broadway for the 2020 season, but it was cancelled due to theCOVID pandemic.^[9]

The Old Vic production toured the US opening at theFirst Interstate Center for the Arts,Spokane, Washington from 12 to 13 November 2021 followed byThe Orpheum Theatre,Phoenix, Arizona (18–21 November),The Smith Center,Las Vegas (23–28 November), and theAhmanson Theatre,Los Angeles (30 November – 1 January 2022) starringBradley Whitford as Scrooge.

An identical production ran at theGolden Gate Theater,San Francisco from 26 November – 26 December 2021, starring Francois Battiste as Scrooge.

The Old Vic production ranOff-Broadway at thePerelman Performing Arts Center from 23 November 2025 until 4 January 2026, starringMichael Cerveris as Scrooge.^[10]

A new production ran at theGate Theatre,Dublin from 15 November 2019 to 18 January 2020 which was directed bySelina Cartmell with set and lighting designed by Ciaran Bagnall and costumes designed by Katie Davenport.^[11]

The Old Vic production had its Australian premiere at theComedy Theatre,Melbourne running from 12 November until 29 December 2022, starringDavid Wenham as Scrooge.^[12] The production returned from 17 November until 31 December 2023 starringOwen Teale as Scrooge (reprising his role from the 2022 London revival)^[13] before returning again from 22 November to 29 December 2024, starringErik Thomson as Scrooge and from 27 November to 24 December 2025, starringLachy Hulme as Scrooge.^[14]

• God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen
• It Came Upon the Midnight Clear
• Il est né, le divin Enfant
• I Saw Three Ships
• Wassail! Wassail! All Over the Town
• O Holy Night
• In the Bleak Midwinter
• Ding Dong Merrily on High
• Coventry Carol
• See, amid the Winter's Snow
• Joy to the World
• Silent Night

In this production, Scrooge's father is revealed to be an uncaringdrunkard who has plunged his family into huge debt and who emotionally abuses his son. Fezziwig is transformed from a merchant to anundertaker who hopes that Scrooge will marry his daughter and inherit his business. "Tiny Tim" Cratchit is not crippled in this production. After his reformation, Scrooge is reunited with Belle, his former fiancée, who had ended their engagement and married another man after fruitlessly waiting for Scrooge to become rich enough to become, in his own words, "a great man". He goes to Belle's house, where she is happy to learn of his change of heart, though both know that Belle cannot abandon her family. They exchange greetings before they part ways.^[16][17] All three of the ghosts are women, including Fan, Scrooge's sister, who is the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. The Ghost of Christmas Present decides to be known as Brenda at the end. The actress also plays the part of Mrs. Fezziwig. The actress playing the Ghost of Christmas Past is also in the ensemble.

• Adaptations ofA Christmas Carol

• 2017 plays
• Plays based on A Christmas Carol
• British plays
• Broadway plays
• Plays set in London
• Christmas plays
• Tony Award–winning plays

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• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from April 2022