Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s excellent production of Leslie Bricusse’s musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol is the third time in a decade I have seen Scrooge! The Musical in Scotland. The first at the Edinburgh Playhouse starred Tommy Steele whose light as a feather, happy as an angel and giddy as a drunken man demeanour – from the off – rather robbed Scrooge’s redemptive transformation from I Hate People to I Like Life of dramatic tension.

The second performer to fill the titular character’s dressing gown and slippers was Michael Barrymore who, though more nuanced and miserly in his approach, had such a tendency to break through the fourth wall and mug to the audience that you never once believed that he was anyone but Michael Barrymore. And his colourful and controversial backstory rather tainted what was a fine touring production at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh.

Which is why it was so refreshing and a darn sight more enjoyable, powerful and quite frankly better to see an experienced actor who is not a household name in Philip Rham tackle the role of miser-grows-wiser with aplomb. Celebrity baggage, there was none. Though with his classical profile, distinguished beard and piercing eyes, he does bear an uncanny resemblance to a young Richard Chamberlain, which is fitting given that the programme notes reveal that the star of Dr. Kildare played the title role in America.

The story of A Christmas Carol is as old as the rolling hills which surround the intimate Pitlochry Festival Theatre. Well, 173 years old to be precise, with 1843 being not only when the original novella by Charles Dickson was written and set, but also when (as director Richard Baron helpfully reminds us in his “Notes on a ghostly little book”) the British government made changes to the Poor Laws that required “benefit applicants to work on treadmills.” Sound familiar?

Dismissing the poor as “scavengers” and “parasites” and describing their deaths as a good way to “decrease the surplus population”, Scrooge’s language and tone is not a far cry from the “shirkers” versus “workers” rhetoric of Call Me Dave and Gideon whose assault on the poor, frail and disabled with draconian policies such as sanctions and the euphemistically entitled “spare room subsidy” was nothing short of scandalous. Unlike Burns who espoused “the man’s the gowd for a’ that”, Scrooge believes in the bottom line and that “accumulating money is the quest of all mankind”.

Political resonances aside, what makes Scrooge! The Musical such an excellent show? In short, the same ingredients which garner most of Pitlochry’s repertory productions with glowing four and five star reviews: a multi-talented cast, fine performances, tight ensemble playing, accomplished vocals, bold direction and in the case of the ten-piece band under the supervision of Dougie Flower a string of wonderful musicians which this year includes a number of distinguished Scottish born and/or based jazz musicians such as bassist Mario Caribe and saxophonist Brian Molley.

That’s not to say the production is flawless, for a number of things rankle: the choreography of Sing A Christmas Carol which mixes still images with slow motion and dance with natural movements lacks the necessary punch of a big opening number and the boisterousness of a busy London market; some of the early set changes are clunky and time-consuming; and as tremendous as Dougal Lee is as Jacob Marley (a cross between Beetlejuice and John Lawrie who is “doomed to wander through the world” in chains), the rattling of his costume as he surreptitiously scuttles backstage quite literally gives the ghost away. But these are minor bah humbugs which fail to detract from all that is good and life-affirming about Scrooge! The Musical.

Philip Rham carries the show with great confidence and is both heartfelt and convincing in Scrooge’s redemptive transformation; Gavin Swift as Harry and Young Ebenezer proves that he is just as nimble on his feet as he is sweet in song; the wonderfully Scottish-sounding Graham Mackay-Bruce is as earnest as can be as the put upon Bob Cratchit; Lee Dillon-Stewart as cheeky-chappie Tom Jenkins delivers the crowd-pleasing Thank You Very Much with cockney gusto; Christopher Price as the stilt-walking Ghost of Christmas Present whose appetite for life is matched only by his capacity for “pouring the wine, and why not?” is as likeable as a Northern Brian Blessed; and last, and by no means least, I defy anyone not to cry when the lame Tiny Tim leans on his crutch to sing The Beautiful Day. A three-letter phrase which, weather aside, perfectly describes my trip to what many people affectionately refer to as the “Theatre in the Hills”.

VIDEO: Scrooge! Audience response

Video courtesy of: Pitlochry Festival Theatre

Peter Callaghan
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