Traveling Players' COMMEDIA CHRISTMAS CAROL to Return in December

Tickets are now available for Commedia Christmas Carol, which runs weekends Dec. 6 - Dec. 15 at Traveling Players Studio in Tysons Corner Center.  Now in its fourth year of performances, the play is a Tysons Corner Center holiday tradition, tailored to the whole family. 

Adapted from Charles Dickens' haunting and heartwarming holiday classic, Commedia Christmas Carol tells the tale of  Ebenezer Scrooge, an excellent man of business.  He cares a lot about money – but very little for his fellow man.  This miserly banker categorically shuns charity, compassion, and cheer.  Enter a terrifying ghost on Christmas Eve!  Jacob Marley (dead for seven years) visits Scrooge, his old business partner with a warning: Mankind is your business!  Change your ways or suffer forever!  You will wear the chains of a life misspent, as I do!   

At Marley's behest, three Spirits take Scrooge on an unforgettable journey into his Past, Present, and Future, laying out his life in front of him.  Once Scrooge can see what adds up to a life well spent, can he change his ways and alter his fate?  Perhaps Tiny Tim, the son of his office clerk, can change his heart. 

Over the past four years of performances, Traveling Players' Commedia Christmas Carol has grown from a 15-minute piece for the Tysons Corner Center Tree Lighting using only five high school actors, to a 90-minute spectacle incorporating masks, puppetry, and special effects.  This year, the eleven high school actors who collectively play 50+ characters will be joined by four elementary school actors to play most of the child roles. 

Eleventh grader Grace Araya (McLean, VA)  will lead the company for a second year as Ebenezer Scrooge.  The cast includes the talents of Samuel Abbruzzese (Annandale, VA), James Cronin (Springfield, VA), Finnin Cullen (McLean, VA), Ina Dufault (McLean, VA), Michael Greco (Falls Church, VA), Alexandra Harris (Arlington, VA), Maizie Klevan (Washington, DC), Miranda Lacy (Alexandria, VA), Liam McLaughlin (Vienna, VA), Morgan Pletcher (Arlington, VA), Sydney Peterson (Springfield, VA), Fiona Sarin (Great Falls, VA), Donovan Wheelock (Washington, DC), and Sophie Woodlock Feghali (Falls Church, VA).

The young performers will be joined by local dignitaries in the roles of the Charity Collectors throughout the six-performance run.  Past cameo performers include US Representative Gerry Connolly, VA Senator Saddam Salim, VA Delegate Holly Siebold, and Fairfax County Supervisor Dalia Palchik.  A list of the cameo performers will be listed on the website as confirmed.  

Traveling Players' Founder and Artistic Director, Jeanne E. Harrison will direct.  Harrison won the 2016 Strauss Award from ArtsFairfax for her integration of classical theatre and physical theatre. 

To purchase tickets, and for more information about the show please visit https://www.travelingplayers.org/performances/.

About Traveling Players 

Recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts as one of 25 model “Summer Schools for the Arts,” Traveling Players is dedicated to training students in grades 2-12 in theatre.  Now in its 22nd year, the company has grown from a summer camp of 18 students to a year-round theatrical community engaging 1,000 students annually.  Founded on faith in the imagination, wit, and honesty of teenagers, Traveling Players' programs help young actors find their voice through bold ensemble-based classes and productions that emphasize connection and community.  

The ensemble ethos that permeates Traveling Players means that everyone is essential to the show.  The actors assume technical roles while in performance, and the dual responsibilities students take on allow them to become more bold and resilient artists and individuals.  

Traveling Players offer classes, camps, and performances all year long at their Studio in Tysons Corner Center.  Over the summer, students can also dedicate their time outdoors; rehearsing, swimming, and living at their residential camps and conservatories. 

Auditions for Traveling Players' Summer Camps & Conservatories and Winter Plays will open in November.

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