West End star David Burt has been cast as Scrooge in Antic Disposition’s magical, musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ festive classic, A Christmas Carol, which returns to the spectacular Elizabethan setting of Middle Temple Hall in central London from Saturday 10th to Tuesday 30th December, following a sell-out run in 2012.
On Christmas Eve, the miser Ebenezer Scrooge is haunted by the ghost of his business partner, Jacob Marley. To help Scrooge avoid the ghastly fate that awaits beyond the grave, Marley arranges for him to be visited by three spirits. But can the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come persuade Scrooge to open his heart to the magic of Christmas before the sun rises?
David Burt is one of the West End’s most respected and in-demand leading men. He has appeared in dozens of notable West End productions, including playing Enjolras in the original cast of Les Misérables, Magaldi in the original cast of Evita, Pontius Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar and Count Fosco in The Woman in White. David’s other credits include Cats, Chess, The Far Pavilions, Closer to Heaven, Taboo and Kiss Me, Kate, as well as seasons at the National Theatre and RSC. He was nominated for a Best Actor Olivier Award for his performance as Macheath in the RSC’s The Beggar’s Opera.
Presented by acclaimed theatre company Antic Disposition, A Christmas Carol is once again being performed in the highly atmospheric 16th-century Middle Temple Hall, a location well known to Dickens himself, who studied law at the ancient institution. Located in the secluded heart of London’s legal quarter between Fleet Street and the River Thames, Middle Temple Hall was completed in 1573 and remains virtually unchanged to this day. With its narrow, cobbled alleyways and shady, gas-lit courtyards, a visit to the Middle Temple is a journey into the London that Dickens himself knew, creating the perfect backdrop for this celebration of his much-loved Christmas classic.
The musical adaptation combines Dickens’ ghostly tale with a score of original songs inspired by the carols of a traditional Victorian Christmas. The historic Hall will be decked for the occasion with boughs of holly, and mulled wine, mince pies and other traditional festive fare will be available to add to the Yuletide spirit.
A Christmas Carol will be Antic Disposition’s fourth visit to Middle Temple Hall, following recent sell-out productions of The Tempest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and the premiere of A
Christmas Carol in 2012.
Founded by director Ben Horslen and designer John Risebero in 2005, Antic Disposition has earned much acclaim for its high quality, visually striking productions of classic plays and stories, which are often presented in spectacular historic locations and non-theatre spaces.
Based on the novel by Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol has a book and lyrics by Ben Horslen and John Risebero, and music by Christopher Peake. A Christmas Carol is directed by Ben Horslen and John Risebero, who also designs, with musical direction by Nick Barstow and Carole Carpenter and musical supervision by Christopher Peake.
