Budding Entrepreneur Tobias Cornwell Launches Immersive Version of A CHRISTMAS CAROL

A budding entrepreneur is spreading festive cheer after spending his time on furlough finishing a re-imagined, Covid-friendly version of A Christmas Carol - with an immersive twist.

Tobias Cornwell, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, will also be starring in the month-long production that sees audience members choose who plays Scrooge on the night - and even tucking into a Christmas dinner alongside the old miser.

The 23-year-old business studies graduate has ensured the innovative A Cratchits' Christmas Carol follows government Covid guidelines, with the socially distanced performance taking place in a Grand Pavilion in the lavish gardens of The Beacon restaurant in Tunbridge Wells.

Tobias and his three other castmates - Anna Blackburn, James Alston and Kathryn Djemai - will be forming a support bubble, while guests can book up to a table of six.

Tickets for the 24-night production - from 24 November-20 December - are on sale for between £55-£70pp - and include a sumptuous three-course Christmas feast cooked by Michelin-recommended chefs.

Tobias believes having something to look forward to this Christmas will help lots of people - so he was determined to come up with an innovative way to ensure the show could go on this winter. So much so - he's personally paying for all the performance and hiring costs, until the show sells enough tickets to break even.

He explained: 'I am fighting to show there is a safe way of moving forward in these times.

'After the year we've all had that's been packed with sacrifice, isolation and hardship, I think a Christmas filled with more jollities, good-will and love than ever before is exactly what we all need.

'I've worked incredibly hard to adapt to this situation, to find an innovative and safe way to bring us together at this time, to share an experience with our loved ones, to create an experience that will leave you feeling more Christmassy than you ever have before.

'This is different to other shows available because we're not doing a regular performance in a half-empty auditorium. Audience members will be sitting with up to five of their friends and family, on a table filled with a Christmas feast.

'They will also have complete control over who plays Scrooge, and get to watch all the other actors have to adapt, run around and fill in all the other roles. With more than 50 roles to fill between the three remaining actors, it's a crazy and hilarious experience for all.

'This show is very accessible for anyone who has had their usual Christmas plans cancelled, whether that be a party or trip up to London for a pantomime, or even those who want to just have something positive in the diary after this year.'

Tobias' productions are unlike any West End spectacle - with his previous shows cleverly taking place in dark forests, hand-built huts and abandoned houses.

His recreation of A Christmas Carol is set amongst the magical backdrop of The Beacon; with the chic wedding and events venue, and restaurant offering sprawling countryside views and a Grand Pavilion with a warm festive atmosphere.

On the night, guests will step inside the home of the Cratchits' family to be welcomed and seated by Charles Dickens' most famous fictional characters, Bob, Emily, Martha and Tim Cratchit.

The immersive Christmas experience is purposely not designed like any other 'simple' dinner and show event, and everything is seamlessly woven together.

Detailing what will happen on the night, Tobias said: 'It will be a Christmas wonderland - beautiful and grand. There'll be tables dotted around the space and the Cratchits' family will welcome you in.

'Drinks and starters will arrive as you take your seat and then the show begins. Each audience member is an extended member of the Cratchit family and it's time for the annual Cratchit Christmas feast.

'With plenty of the usual singing and festive jollities which we all love, and once again the Cratchit family have prepared their retelling of how Ebenezer Scrooge learnt how to love Christmas.

'The only problem is that this year they can't decide who's supposed to be playing Scrooge. So it's up to the audience to pick who gets to perform the plum role - the biggest cheer wins!

'Then, as Scrooge's nephew Fred eats his Christmas dinner, the audience's meal will be served too as the show subtly leads into the interval.

'Then there will also be a point near the end where desserts will suddenly be served because Scrooge starts to love Christmas and gives Christmas pudding to everyone!'

Tobias used his time furloughed from his job in the hospitality industry during lockdown to put the finishing touches to this unique production - which he describes as 'different, daring and bold'.

The former business student, who graduated from Exeter University in 2018, has put his all into his theatre company - called Get Out Of My Space, or GOOMS - and even worked 12-hour days to put on a production after the government allowed theatre performances to reopen in September.

But Tobias happily puts in the hard work. He said: 'GOOMS represents the future of theatre and Christmas is the perfect season to show what we can do.

'We're not doing regular performances in half-empty auditoriums.

'What we are presenting is the future of theatre; our style is unrestricted by an auditorium and leaves audiences in awe of what is possible under the umbrella that is theatre.'

'This Christmas show is different; no one knows who is going to be picked to play Scrooge, and you're not watching from miles away like you would if you went up to London.

'If you're looking for an evening filled with laughs, delicious food and a whole lot of Christmassy spirit, look no further!'

TICKET DETAILS:

A Cratchits' Christmas Carol

24th November - 20th December (excl Mondays)

Tues-Sat 7pm start | Sunday 5pm start

The Beacon, Tea Garden Lane, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN3 9JH

Tickets range from £55-£70 and include a three-course Christmas feast cooked by the Michelin Guide recommended chefs at The Beacon.

Book via www.gooms.co.uk/tickets (Due to COVID-19 we are selling tables of up to 6 and therefore a minimum booking of 4 must be made.)

https://www.facebook.com/goomsproductions/

https://www.instagram.com/getoutofmyspace/

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