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Photo by John Eaton
Shown are (from left to right) Bryson Fuhrer handing the crutch he used when he played Tiny Tim to Oliver and Sylvia Duterte who are both playing Tiny Tim now. Also shown is Sarah Duterte, the children’s mother who is also a member of the Warehouse Theatre “A Christmas Carol” cast.

Hamilton-Gibson Productions is offering seven performances of “A Christmas Carol” during Wellsboro’s 37th Annual Dickens of a Christmas three-day celebration.

“A Christmas Carol”, written by Charles Dickens 177 years ago, is one of the world’s most enduring holiday stories. It is the tale of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, a coldhearted man who learns the value of love thanks to the intervention of three ghosts who come to haunt him on Christmas Eve. Holiday cheer, whimsical humor and a good dose of scary thrills combine with the timeless truths and themes in this story of a man’s redemption.

On Saturday, Dec. 4, Dickens’ classic ghost tale is being performed by one cast at 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. in the Coolidge Theatre in the Deane Center for the Performing Arts at 104 Main Street in Wellsboro and by a second cast at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the Warehouse Theatre at 3 Central Avenue in Wellsboro. Each performance will be just over one hour. The seventh performance of “A Christmas Carol” will be at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 5 in the Warehouse Theatre.

The script for both productions is the same. One member of the cast plays Scrooge with the others portraying a number of different characters. Slight costume changes are made in view of the audience and the action of the haunting tale unfolds seamlessly. Much is left to the individual theatergoer’s imagination because the production celebrates the rich Dickens’ prose with the use of the “story theatre” form. Actors not only play characters, but also serve as narrators using the original Dickens’ language.

This is the second year that brother and sister Oliver and Sylvia Duterte, the children of Sarah and Ramon Duterte of Wellsboro, are playing the role of Tiny Tim as well as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come and serving as narrator for the Warehouse Theatre production but 2021 is the first time they will perform on stage in front of live audiences. In 2020, they each starred in one of the two audio only full versions of the show, both produced by Hamilton-Gibson and aired online due to COVID-19 restrictions. This year, they will each perform in two of the four shows being presented by the Warehouse Theatre cast on Dec. 4 and 5.

Bryson Fuhrer of Knoxville, the son of Jessica and Brandon Fuhrer, played Tiny Tim for three years on stage until 2019 when he aged out. For this year’s production, he was chosen to play Fred, Scrooge’s nephew, the Ghost of Christmas Present and other roles. He is the only Tiny Tim to return and take on other roles in the show. New to the cast this year is Sarah Duterte as Mrs. Cratchit and the Ghost of Christmas Past. Tom Walrath has played Ebenezer Scrooge for more than two decades. Two other cast members, Kristine Worthington as Belle and Mrs. Fezziwig and Brian Kennedy as Jacob Marley, Bob Cratchit and Mr. Fezziwig, have also been in this cast for many years. Director is Gabe Hakvaag. Music Director is Cherilyn Ayres.

This is the first year that third grader Asher Cuneo, son of Zac and Lindsey Cuneo of Wellsboro, is playing Tiny Tim and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come and is narrator in the Coolidge Theatre cast. Other cast members are: Rob Kathcart as Ebenezer Scrooge; Coleen Evert as Mrs. Cratchit and the Ghost of Christmas Past; Samantha Coolidge as Scrooge’s sister Fan and his jilted fiancée Belle; Ryan Dalton as Bob Cratchit and Marley’s Ghost; and Ryan Mullins as Scrooge’s nephew Fred and the Ghost of Christmas Present. Director and set designer is Thomas Putnam. Gary Citro is piano accompanist.

For tickets, order online at hgp.booktix.com or contact the HG office at (570) 724-2079.

Diane Eaton
dianetn@ptd.net
(570) 724-3800