Commedia Beauregard's adaptation of Dickens' A Christmas Carol, performed entirely in tlhIngan Hol (the Klingon language originally created for the Star Trek TV series and feature films), will return with a new director, new cast members and move to a new venue for its fifth and final seasonal Chicago production in December 2014. Catie O' Donnell, a Madison, Wisconsin based director, will bring her experience in opera and theater to Christopher Kidder-Mostrom and Sasha Warren's adaptation of the Dickens' favorite. O'Donnell says her background staging operas sung in foreign languages will be an asset in telling this story in the language of Star Trek's notorious warrior people. "When working in another language," she says, "it's essential to tell the story visually. Even though we'll have supertitles, the actors' movement will be critical in showing how Klingons think and act."
A Klingon Christmas Carol takes Scrooge to the Klingons' home planet of Qo'noS (pronounced Kronos). Scrooge, or more precisely SQuja' (pronounced Scroo-jah) is shown to be without honor or courage when the three ghosts arrive to help him become the warrior he ought to be in time to save Tiny Tim from a terrible fate. The production will be staged for the first time at the Athenaeum Theatre, in that venue's 81-seat Studio Two. "The new venue will allow us to add set decoration like wall paintings to create an environmental production, taking our audiences more fully to the planet Qo'noS." Several new puppets are being created to join the elaborate makeup and masks needed to emulate the ridged foreheads, and snaggled and prominent teeth of the Klingon race. While the specifics of the plot will vary from Dickens in those respects, O'Donnell says the story of A Christmas Carol is universal and can transfer to other planets. "Though the characters aren't observing a holiday called Christmas, they're experiencing the same type of celebration. The message here is the same as in Dickens - to live your life to the fullest and share what you have with others."Videos