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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories SOU's Campus Choice presented to U.S. Senate Ex accused of stealing $20,000 from Ashland woman's home Fiberoptic Lighting calls it quits after 27 years Asante merger stabilizes Ashland hospital's finances 'Everyone has a story' Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services Lawsuits claim sexual assault and whistle-blower retaliation at OnTrack Gang-related shooting in Portland sends 3 youth to hospital Emergency services Jail lobby commotion sends man back to cell 30 minutes after release Politics and Elections Time running out for O&C funds GMO vote recount still shows little change GMO labeling votes recounted under careful watch in Jackson County Kent Bush: First Amendment doesn’t mean what you think it means East Medford's the charm Education St. Mary's plays host to youth robotics tournament A lesson in giving Hedrick student council works to clean up the language Table Rock solid: Elementary school praised for keeping attendance up Eagle Point superintendent invited to White House Environment No fish, no funding for problem dams Most residents speak against gas pipeline Coalition asks for defense of GMO ban Home Help: Make your new house feel like home Bighorn sheep reintroduced along Klamath River State News As deadline nears, Oregon's health insurance signups still low Gang-related shooting in Portland sends 3 youth to hospital GMO labeling proponents concede defeat Tribes can decide whether to legalize pot Lawyer says football player had altercation Nation - World Grand jury won't indict Ferguson cop in shooting Obituaries Diana DeVoe Logan Ronald Bombick In Memory of Richard Eugene Snyder Rudy Giorgetti Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Sports Latest Stories Hope lost Crater, North strong at Coast Classic Spartans complete sweep of Totems Raiders self-destruct in loss to Chiefs No. 3 Florida State turns to practice field Varsity 541 College Sports No. 3 Florida State turns to practice field Smith big in SOU’s rout of Pacific Union Baker happy to have Heisman company Mariota takes Heisman in landslide Brooks, Oregon beat Illinois Pro Sports Hope lost Spartans complete sweep of Totems Raiders self-destruct in loss to Chiefs Scott claims Australian gold Spartans race to early lead in win Community Sports Keeping Fit: Runners need to do more than run to stay in shape RESULTS/STANDINGS LOCAL EVENTS Business Latest Stories Rental owners group reports 2.48 percent vacancy rate Blog: It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like... K-BAR ignites agriculture boom beneath Table Rocks State lags on grocery inspections Blog: Bear Creek Plaza next up on the market Real Estate News Rental owners group reports 2.48 percent vacancy rate More sales, but no change in residential housing median price Dear Monty: Violation of HOA rules creates conflict Farmers file suit over GMO crop ban People In Business People in Business, Dec. 3 People in Business, Nov. 18 Transportation Allegiant Air will resume Medford-Phoenix service May 22 Agriculture K-BAR ignites agriculture boom beneath Table Rocks Southern Oregon wine industry had a robust 2013 Farmers file suit over GMO crop ban Lawsuit seeks to overturn Jackson County's GMO ban or net $4.2 million for farms Opinion Latest Letters to the Editor, Dec. 14 Our View: Dana Milbank: The coarsening of politics George Will: The cheerfulness of tax reform Charles Krauthammer: A travesty of a report Editorials Our View: Other Views: Riley leaves strong legacy at OSU Our View: Cheers and jeers Our View: Sentencing reform pays dividends Our View: Find middle ground on timber policy Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Dec. 14 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 12 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 11 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 10 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 9 Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future Guest Opinion: Suit threatens family farms and democratic vote Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Guest Opinion: It's time Oregon put a price on carbon Lifestyle Latest stories Give time as your holiday present The cure for nostalgia — Embrace it Community blog: Saving Lives Barry Lewis: Getting into the holiday shopping spirit Play local, pay local Food Community blog: Gobble gougeres as appetizers or with light meals Community blog: Choose presents cooks can cherish, not regift Roasted vegetables are rich, flavorful Food for Thought: Meal-planning hacks to help you dine fast and healthy Kitchen Call: Hints for gluten-free holidays Home and Garden Rogue Valley Christmas light displays Remodeling your attic: Know the details before you start Dear Monty: When a lawyer’s fee is four times higher than the quote Home Help: Make your new house feel like home Troubleshoot common water boiler problems Health Community blog: Saving Lives Health Watch: Curb your kitchen cravings this holiday season Community blog: Unsubscribe.com Community blog: Redefining Family Dr. Murray Feingold: Say it like you mean it Hiking Biking Faith Religion news: Pope aims to expedite sex abuse rulings Milestones and Achievements Asante merger stabilizes Ashland hospital's finances Time running out for O&C funds Hire 'em and pray for snow Madi-Stiles A New Song Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories TMTO's 'Christmas Carol' a big, warmhearted extravaganza Phil Newton & David Pinsky at 2Hawk Winery Live Music in Local Clubs Over Easy serves 'pop-up' brunch Sundays Meet the real Jacob Marley Theater Meet the real Jacob Marley This Nutcracker ballet will have a superhero twist Plumbing the depths of meaning TMTO presents 'A Christmas Carol: The Musical' Theater review: 'Fiddler' charms audience in magical Camelot performance Music Rating old-timers’ albums from 2014 Phil Newton & David Pinsky at 2Hawk Winery Handel's 'Messiah' set for this weekend Live Music in Local Clubs Bob Haworth plays EdenVale Winery Community Events Rogue Valley Christmas light displays It's a Hamazon holiday at the Playwright Public House 4 Things to do this Week Soroptimist holiday home tour features four houses this weekend Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Dining Over Easy serves 'pop-up' brunch Sundays Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Brunch at Loft Brasserie The Bohemian Club Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Asante merger stabilizes Ashland hospital's finances ... Our View: ... Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future ... Asante merger stabilizes Ashland hospital's finances ... Our View: ... Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future ... REVIEW TMTO's 'Christmas Carol' a big, warmhearted extravaganza By Bill Varble Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Bill Varble Mail Tribune Posted Dec. 13, 2014 @ 10:34 am By Bill Varble Mail Tribune Posted Dec. 13, 2014 @ 10:34 am --> If you go What: "A Christmas Carol the Musical" Who: Teen Musical Theater of Oregon When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Dec. 18-19, and 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20 Where: Crat... » Read more X If you go What: "A Christmas Carol the Musical" Who: Teen Musical Theater of Oregon When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Dec. 18-19, and 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20 Where: Craterian Theater, 23 S. Central Ave., Medford Tickets: $20 for adults, $10 for youth For more info: www.craterian.org » Social News "A Christmas Carol the Musical" is a big, joyous yuletide romp. Teen Musical Theater of Oregon's buoyant new production is a faithful rendition of the 1994 musical with book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens, score by Oscar- and Tony-winning Alan Menken and lyrics by Tony-winner Ahrens, all of which fairly burst with holiday cheer. Doug Ham's energetic direction, Cailey McCandless's rollicking choreography, Sue Quackenbush's vivid Victorian costumes, Gabriel Ash's fog-shrouded London and Brad Nelson's moody, saturated lighting combine for a spectacle that whisks the audience to 1840s London with dozens (40-some, I think) of ebullient young actors, singers and dancers giving it all they've got. The opening number, sung by the company, "A Jolly Good Time," sets the tone. In "Nothing to Do With Me," there is a hint of something darker as Scrooge (a finely dour Brian Day, who in his day job is  a Central Point police captain) snarls, "If the poor have to eat, let them beg on the street." But such Scrooge-ish sentiments pass quickly, to be replaced by the likes of the ever-patient Bob Cratchit (Evan Sheets) and company going all sentimental on us in "You Mean More to Me." The ghost of Marley emerging from a thick fog band issuing from the fireplace in Scrooge's cheerless digs is a striking effect, Marley's chains have the requisite cash boxes in tow, and more ghosts quickly show up with the chains they forged in their time in this mortal coil. But with all the humor and the dancing, the scene doesn't really budge the horror meter.  The Ghost of Christmas Past (Emma Kruse) is a fine singer. The warmhearted "The Lights of Long Ago" is followed by "A Place Called Home Part One," featuring Grayson Weaver as young Scrooge spreading still more warm fuzzies until all the good vibes culminate in the dizzying uproar of "Mr. Fezziwig's Annual Christmas Ball," in which the manic singing and dancing goose the gaiety meter up to 11. The whole thing is irresistible. And it's in keeping with at least a part of the spirit of Dickens, who more than any other individual was responsible for the 19th century morphing of Christmas from a solemn, religious observance to the mad, modern holiday of feasting, gifts (read: the shopping gauntlet) and merriment. OK, Prince Albert brought the pagan custom of the Christmas tree from Germany. But much of our Christmas — although its commercialism is beyond anything Dickens could have imagined — goes back to the great novelist and social critic.  And granted, you don't go to a Christmas show to be frightened, depressed or outraged. Which is why "A Christmas Carol: the Musical" downplays Dickens' indictment of the flinty hearts of the prosperous class of Victorians and puts a big smiley face on the familiar tale of the redemption of a sour, old miser. Dickens' Scrooge was a horrifying figure, morally and socially, and Dickens didn't dream him up out of thin air. Scrooge is the emblem of the wealthy elite of London, who, when they weren't sending children to work in the mines for pennies, routinely consigned indigent and working Londoners to the horrors of poorhouses and debtors prisons. To his grinchy credit, Scrooge still says, "Are there no prisons?" Are there no workhouses?" But the moment passes quickly. Dickens was inspired by an 1843 Parliament report on how working-class children were faring as the industrial revolution re-made the face of England (miserably). He toured factories and mines where poor children were forced into grueling and dangerous labor, and he was outraged by what he saw. He poured that rage into a novella with a good ghost story and a happy ending, and one of the most popular books of all time was born. Which is why the question, amid the relentless cheer, is how much cheer is too much? OK, enough quibbling with Ockrent's book. The thing is full of fine songs, from the rousing "Fezziwig's" to the celebratory "Christmas Together" to the (barely) macabre "Dancing on Your Grave." And the script is synced with the soundtrack that comes with the licensing so that telling little musical motifs often underscore and comment on the action. The dance numbers are particularly good (see the irrepressible Josiah Arthur as Fezziwig). It's an achievement to employ so many dancers so effectively, let alone the fact that choreographer McCandless and dance captain Maria Martin pulled off the feat of creating all the dance long-distance via YouTube. There's a small but telling twist in the story that differs from Dickens. On our journey into the past, we see Ebenezer Scrooge's father being sent by a judge to debtors prison, as Dickens' own father had been. This bit of backstory gives him a bit of humanizing motivation he wouldn't need if he were simply, as in the original, a composite character representing London's one-percenters. Let's be clear. "A Christmas Carol the Musical" is everything we expect a holiday entertainment to be. It's a big, warmhearted, good-humored, song-and-dance extravaganza from a big bunch of talented kids and some very competent professionals. Is it Dickens' story, with its focus on the social injustice and the outrage? Not exactly. And something is thereby lost. But if you want an evening of sharply produced, uplifting entertainment after a day of shopping and a belly full of fruitcake, this will fill the bill. Reach Medford freelance writer Bill Varble at [email protected] . By Bill Varble Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Bill Varble Mail Tribune Posted Dec. 13, 2014 @ 10:34 am » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. 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