New version of Dickens' classic 'A Christmas Carol' opening at Farmington Civic Center

Theatrical or cinematic interpretations of the classic Charles Dickens novel “A Christmas Carol” stretch back several decades, making it one of the more oft-produced tales in the history of either medium.

But the nationally touring version of “A Christmas Carol” that will make its premiere this weekend at the Farmington Civic Center promises to be a much different production from all its predecessors. For the first time, the Dickens story is being staged as a full-fledged musical — one that will feature a strong Farmington contingent among its cast and crew.

Lowell Williams of Perseverance Productions, the show’s producer, approached Randy West, the Civic Center supervisor and director of the Four Corners Musical Theatre Company, in March, inviting him to direct the show, which will be performed 22 times in 20 cities between this weekend and Dec. 22, when the tour finishes its run in the Buffalo, New York, area.

By summer, Williams — who also wrote the book for the show — and West had agreed that West’s participation would extend even further, in the form of West helping develop and create an original score for the show. Ultimately, West wrote the lyrics for the production with lead actor Dan Kamin, while West’s longtime friend and collaborator Justin Hill composed the music.

“The productions we have done in the past had music,” Williams said of the show that has been performed across the country during the holiday season for the past several years.

But those versions featured public-domain Christmas carols that were performed by cast members as respites between scenes, as opposed to tunes that were fully integrated into the fabric of the show, as in a Broadway musical, which is how this rendition is structured.

“This is really a big change,” Williams said, explaining that West’s extensive background in musical theater and developing new projects made him the obvious choice as a creative partner. “This show is much more Broadway in style. The other versions of it were more like a play with music, rather than a musical.”

The score that has been developed by Hill, West and Kamin in only three months surpassed all his expectations, Williams said, validating his decision to take such a creative risk with such well-known material.

“They’re all terrific,” he said of the tunes the trio composed. “You’d think there would be a clunker in there, but there isn’t.”

The reimagining of “A Christmas Carol” as a Broadway musical is likely to give the show new life and a new appeal, Williams said.

“Compared to what we’ve done in the past, this is another thing entirely in terms of energy,” he said.

West said the entire project has been challenging, including the 12-day rehearsal window that is two days shorter than his normal schedule for staging such a show. But he said everyone associated with the production has been nothing but professional, and the show’s rapid evolution has been striking, even to him.

“I see growth everyday in every area, so we’re going to get there,” he said.

It’s difficult enough to integrate new cast and crew members into a nationally touring show in just two weeks under normal circumstances, Williams said. But that task was made much more difficult when “A Christmas Carol” was converted into a Broadway-style show.

“A straight play is relatively easy to produce,” he said. “But a musical is more than twice as hard. I realize how blessed I am to be working with these people. … It’s kind of remarkable because it could have gone not so well.”

West’s work as a lyricist and director of the show will add another line to his lengthy musical theater resume, but it also will help build the profile of the city of Farmington as a creative community. The city and the Four Corners Musical Theatre Company West founded here will be credited on all promotional materials as a collaborator with Perseverance Productions and CMI Entertainment on the show. Those materials also will note that the new version of the show originated here.

“This is maybe a bigger step than a baby step,” West said, explaining that his previous efforts to build Farmington’s reputation as a cultural destination were much less ambitious. But city officials were supportive of this project every step of the way, he said, and he is convinced their faith in the show will pay off as it reaches audiences in Florida, Texas, South Carolina, Kansas, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Vermont, Delaware and New York over the next several weeks.

West won’t be traveling with the show when it goes on the road, as his duties at the Civic Center will keep him here. But Sarah Harkness, West’s associate director and choreographer for the Four Corners Musical Theatre Company, will serve as West’s stand-in during the tour, in addition to performing as a member of the cast.

Joining Harkness in the cast are Farmington native Amber Swenk and her 13-year-old son Jacob, and Four Corners Musical Theatre Company veterans Tanner Berry and Zada Lile.

While West said he is excited that the new show is going to have its world premiere in Farmington, part of him wishes local audiences could see the production at the end of its run, when the cast and crew have really settled into it and hit their stride.

“I never lock a musical,” he said, explaining that his approach as a director is to encourage his actors to exist in the moment and react to new situations and stimuli, giving them the freedom to continue to add depth and shading to their characters even after the show has opened. “That way they can breathe more air into it.”

Williams said he appreciates West’s philosophy in that regard, but he doesn’t think anyone will be shortchanged by seeing this interpretation of “A Christmas Carol” so early in its five-week run.

“I can’t wait for Friday,” Williams said. “I just think it’s going to be fantastic.”

“A Christmas Carol” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17 and Saturday, Nov. 18 at the Civic Center, 200 W. Arrington St. Tickets range from $24 to $28. Call 505-599-1148 or visit fmtn.org/shows.

Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 or measterling@daily-times.com. Support local journalism with a digital subscription: http://bit.ly/2I6TU0e.

This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Farmington first stop for national tour of 'A Christmas Carol' musical