Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol during Victorian-era London, a time of great contrast between the rich and the poor. The Industrial Revolution was occurring, and the “Hungry Forties” was a period of poor harvests, high unemployment, and a drop in trade. The story travels back in time to Scrooge’s youth in the early 19th century, and to an undisclosed period of time in the future. But the overall story takes place on Christmas Eve in 1843.

EBENEZER SCROOGE
A bitter old man who runs a counting house, lending money and charging interest to his borrowers. Scrooge is greedy, rude, and selfish. On Christmas Eve, he is taken on a great journey by the Spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future.

JACOB MARLEY
Scrooge’s old business partner who died seven years prior to the beginning of the story. In life, he was greedy like Scrooge. Marley comes back as a spirit to give Scrooge a warning.

GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PAST
One of the spirits who visits Scrooge on Christmas Eve. This Ghost shows Scrooge his past, from a young boy at school to a young man entering the world of business.

GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT
One of the spirits who visits Scrooge on Christmas Eve. This Ghost shows Scrooge the inner lives of the people he knows

GHOST OF CHRISTMAS FUTURE
One of the spirits who visits Scrooge on Christmas Eve. This Ghost shows Scrooge what could happen if he does not change his ways.

BOB CRATCHIT
Head of the Cratchit household. Bob works as a clerk for Ebenezer Scrooge. He is a kind, loving, and charitable man who enjoys joking around with his children, especially his youngest, Tiny Tim. Bob does not make a lot of money, but his family’s happiness is worth everything to him.

MRS. CRATCHIT
Bob’s wife and the mother the five Cratchit children. She and her husband teach their children to be giving and caring. Mrs. Cratchit is tough but kind and loving

TINY TIM
The youngest Cratchit child. Tiny Tim is sick and uses crutches to walk. Tiny Tim feels sympathetic towards Scrooge because he believes that Scrooge is lonely.

FRED
The only remaining living relative of Scrooge, Fred is Scrooge’s nephew. Fred’s mother, Fan, was Scrooge’s sister. He is kind, loving, and charitable. Fred loves Christmas and tries every year to involve his uncle in the holiday.

MR. FEZZIWIG
Scrooge’s first employer. He is caring toward young Scrooge, almost like a father to him.

MRS. FEZZIWIG
Mr. Fezziwig’s wife, a sweet, caring woman who cries often.

BELLE
Belle was Scrooge’s fiancée. She broke off the engagement when she felt Scrooge’s greed had overtaken him. She is quite the opposite of Scrooge: kind, benevolent, and courteous.

Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812. At the age of 15, Charles gained employment in an attorney’s office working as an office boy. While in this position, Charles worked relentlessly to further educate himself. In 1829, Charles became a freelance reporter at the Doctor’s Common Courts. By 1832, he had established himself as a reporter and worked for various newsprint publications. In 1833, Dickens published his first story under the pseudonym Boz. His first full length novel, The Pickwick Papers, was published in 1836/37 through a series of monthly installments. Following the success of this publication, Dickens was appointed the editor of Belleny’s Miscellany and turned his focus to writing novels. In addition to his professional success in 1836, Dickens also had significant developments in his personal life, as he married Catherine Hogarth on April 2nd. The couple would go on to have 10 children together before separating in 1858. In addition to his success as a writer, Charles Dickens was also an ardent social crusader. He actively campaigned against child labour and poverty. He passed away on June 9, 1870.

Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol in 1843, over the span of six weeks. The novella was first published on December 19, 1843, with the first edition sold out by Christmas Eve. By 1844, the novella had gone through 13 printings and continues to be a robust seller more than 175 years later. Like many of Dickens’ other works, A Christmas Carol was written as a work of social commentary. Dickens had a lifelong devotion to helping the underserved due to his own family’s experiences with debtors prison, which forced him to drop out of school as a boy and work at a factory. As Dickens’ biographer Michael Slater described, the author thought of A Christmas Carol as a way to, “help open the hearts of the prosperous and powerful towards the poor and powerless….”

Barbara Field was born on February 15, 1934. Her work has been seen at regional theatres across the United States and Canada, as well as in Europe. A co-founder and core member of The Playwrights’ Center, Ms. Field served as dramaturg/playwright-in-residence at the Guthrie Theater for eight years. During that time, she wrote a number of adaptations for the Guthrie, two of which toured nationally. She was twice a playwright-in-residence at the Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights’ Conference, and has held Shubert, Bush, McKnight and Minnesota State Arts Board fellowships. In 1982, she wrote an adaptation of Great Expectations for the Seattle Children’s Theatre, which was produced at the old PONCHO Theatre in the Woodland Park Zoo. Her version of the Dickens play won the L.A. Drama Critics award in 1996. She was co-winner of the Humana Festival’s Great American Play contest, at Actors Theatre of Louisville (for Neutral Countries), and was awarded a DramaLogue award for Boundary Waters (South Coast Repertory Theatre). A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the University of Minnesota (MA), she has served as a panel member and site reporter for the NEA. She passed away on February 21, 2021.

Field’s adaptation for A Christmas Carol was seen by millions during its 35-year run at the Guthrie Theater, introducing many to the power of theater with a transformative ghost story. Her adaptation is a part of Spokane Civic Theatre’s DNA. Civic first produced her rich and delightful take on Mr. Dicken’s tale in the late 1970s, under the artful direction of the legendary Dorothy Darby Smith, one of Civic’s Founders. Dorothy, and later others, would continue to direct Barbara’s adaptations for many, many holiday seasons, and this included a streamlined version used in later years. In 2020, at Civic’s request, Barbara authorized an updated script to share with the Spokane community, in collaboration with Spokane Public Radio.