We've got our hands on First Look rehearsal images for Park Theatre's Cratchit. Check them out below.
Olivier Award-winner John Dagleish stars as Bob Cratchit in an astute rewriting of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, having previously played the character in Jack Thorne’s adaption of the show at the Old Vic in 2017. Alexander Knott’s Cratchit reimagines the well-loved tale of Ebenezer Scrooge from the perspective of Bob Cratchit. As a hard frost descends on London Town, Bob Cratchit gets his own visit from the spirits of Christmastime. Catapulted forward through the years, the poorly paid clerk is shown a bleak vision of the future world: inequality and strife perpetuate, while the gap between the 1% and everyone else grows wider. Cratchit is a darker look at the Dickens’ tale of redemption, a call to arms against injustice and rallying cry for solidarity and fortitude.
Cratchit premiered online under the title December at the Old Red Lion in winter 2020. It was streamed to audiences at home during lockdown to critical acclaim. The play captured the troubled image of the future world shown to Bob Cratchit and fleshed out Dickens’ famously upbeat character, showing him to be a stoic but flawed man soldiering on against the odds. It has now been reworked in preparation for its live premiere at Park Theatre this Christmas.
The lead role of Bob Cratchit is performed by John Dagleish. The actor won the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance in Sunny Afternoon at the Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre. His other credits include Sylvia and A Christmas Carol (as Bob Cratchit) at The Old Vic, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Young Vic. He is joined by Freya Sharp as Martha Cratchit. Freya’s previous work includes; The Bandaged Woman and Nuclear War at the Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington.
Writer and Director Alexander Knott said “I could not be more excited to begin work on this festive retelling, alongside such a stellar team. Now more than ever, at the coldest time of year, it is vital to find the balance between the difficulties and hardship of winter that so many face, and the hope and promise that Christmas brings. John and Freya are superb, versatile performers and we are all looking forward to bringing this haunting, modern and ultimately uplifting winter's ghost story to Park Theatre.”
Rehearsal images by Charles Flint:
