A Christmas Carol musical to run at the Lowry next Christmas

Hope Mill Theatre is set to present a new production of the musical version of A Christmas Carol at the Lowry in Salford for the 2024/25 festive season. Co-founders Joseph Houston and William Whelton, known for their hit production of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella in 2022, will co-direct and choreograph the musical.

As part of Hope Mill Theatre’s expansion plans to produce its award-winning musicals on a larger scale in other venues, A Christmas Carol will run at The Lowry’s Quays Theatre from 6 December 2024 to 4 January 2025. The musical is based on Charles Dickens’ novella, featuring music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and a book by Mike Ockrent and Ahrens.

The classic Dickens story follows the miser Scrooge, who undergoes a transformative journey on Christmas Eve with visits from three ghosts representing the Past, Present, and Future. The cast and full creative team for the production will be announced later.

Whelton said: “We are thrilled to be bringing A Christmas Carol to The Lowry. While we will continue to produce work at our wonderful home venue, it has become increasingly challenging for us to stage ambitious, large-scale musicals at Hope Mill so we have been exploring new ways to work in the future – which includes staging our work at other theatres.

“We are so excited to be producing A Christmas Carol at the Lowry – a wonderful organisation we have long admired that has a thriving, supportive audience. We look forward to our loyal audiences – and new ones – seeing this work in Salford next Christmas.”

Houston added: “While A Christmas Carol is a story we are all familiar with – especially at this time of year – when I was introduced to this musical version, I was instantly drawn in anew thanks to the legendary Alan Menken’s stunning music and Lynn Ahrens’ wonderful lyrics. It has everything you’d expect – from soaring tunes to full Broadway dance numbers. Myself and Will loved collaborating on Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella in 2022 and we are delighted to be bringing this very special musical to the Lowry for Christmas 2024. We can’t wait for audiences to see the special show we have in store for them.”

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