Friday, January 17, 2025
“A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas Carol” first premiered at a small church in Garden City 30 years ago, and this holiday season, the beloved retelling of Charles Dickens’ timeless classic is returning to Long Island for a special 30th-anniversary production — and one of the shows is coming to Freeport.
Among the five performances this month will be one presented at the Freeport United Methodist Church, 46 Pine St., at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Directed by the play’s author, Gayden Wren, and music-directed by Stephen O’Leary, the production is presented by the Gilbert & Sullivan Light Opera Company of Long Island.
The group also produced the play’s 1994 world premiere and continues to bring the Victorian-era story of redemption to life, set to the melodies of Gilbert and Sullivan operas.
“We debuted in 1994 at the Unitarian Church in Garden City, as it happens, and we, and lots of other people, have been doing the show ever since,” Wren said. “It sold out. We turned away more people than we let in.”
Since then, the show has seen stages worldwide, including productions in England, Canada, New Zealand and even Macedonia.
“Christmas Carol” tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge’s transformation from miser to benefactor, reimagined with Wren’s book and lyrics and set to Arthur Sullivan’s music.
Familiar Gilbert & Sullivan tunes like The Mikado’s “Three Little Maids from School” are cleverly adapted into “Three Little Ghosts for Scrooge.”
The production boasts a 22-member cast, including Chris Diamond as Ebenezer Scrooge, Jordan Breslow as Bob Cratchit, Roseanne Rodriguez as Emily Cratchit and Hanna Roth as Tiny Tim.
Cast members have been rehearsing since the fall, meeting weekly at the Chatterton School in Merrick, where the company has held their rehearsals since their inception, to bring the demanding musical numbers and choreography to life.
For Freeport United Methodist Church, hosting “A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas Carol” is both a fundraiser and an opportunity to share the spirit of the season with the community.
“The whole spirit of Christmas is to spread joy, concern and caring,” Linda Hendrickson, president of the church’s board of trustees, said. “The whole series of Scrooge being transformed from the miser, the miserable, suspicious person to one of overjoy that can’t be contained is in the very spirit of Christmas.”
This marks the first time the church has hosted a full-scale production of this kind. “We’ve done our traditional Christmas pageants, but we were looking to have something that was totally different and maybe more community-encompassing,” Hendrickson said.
Wren, who has been with the Gilbert & Sullivan Light Opera Company since 1976, noted that the play is universally appealing.
“It’s a redemption story, and I think that resonates for Christian audiences,” Wren said. “But I should emphasize … that everybody loves the story of ‘A Christmas Carol,’ and I’m sure that our show in Freeport on the 21st (of December) will have plenty of Catholics and Jews and Muslims. It really is a universal story.”
In addition to Freeport, “A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas Carol” has also played at churches in Islip, Westbury and Port Washington. The production will have one additional Long Island performance at the First Presbyterian Church of Oceanside, 2701 Oceanside Road, at 8 p.m. on Friday. Tickets for the Oceanside show are $20 and can be purchased by calling (516) 766-5916, visiting Facebook.com/fpcoceansideny, or stopping by the church office.
Tickets for the Freeport performance are $25 for adults and $15 for children and students. Reservations can be made by calling (516) 764-0643 or emailing office@freeportumc.net. Tickets will also be available at the door, where cash, checks or credit cards will be accepted. Doors will open at 7 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. performance.
“I heartily recommend this production for anyone interested in Gilbert & Sullivan,” said the show’s music director, Stephen O’Leary, over text. “It can be experienced either as an introduction to the music of almost all of their operas or as an appreciation of how the original words are tweaked to fit Dickens’s story.”
Wren summed up the enduring appeal of the show by saying, “It’s really very encouraging. It’s a rewarding experience to put the show on its feet every once in a while and find that something that (I) wrote 30 years ago still connects to people.”
For tickets or additional information about the Freeport performance, visit FreeportUmc.net or call (516) 764-0643.
