When former Addison Trail High School teacher Dale Bower was a little tyke, he received his very first book — Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.”  In addition to absorbing its pages, he watched the movie version of the book during its annual television airing at Christmastime. 

His connection with this classic holiday story continued to strengthen as he began to embody the story. Literally. Bower was in the cast of his college’s production of the play, appearing as one of the Cratchit children. Then, while a teacher at Addison Trail, he played Ebenezer Scrooge about half a dozen times for the school’s performances of the play. 

And now a whole new dimension has been added to his involvement with “A Christmas Carol.”  Bower will be directing a production called “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol,” sponsored by the Addison Center for the Arts in conjunction with the Addison Cultural Arts Commission.  There are two main elements of the show which make it quite unique. 

First, this story is not the traditional holiday tale, but a version that has put an intriguing spin on the original. It is told from the perspective of Jacob Marley, who you may recall as Scrooge’s bummed-out, dead business partner.

The other truly unique element is its one-man-show format. Addison native Patrick Able is that one man, and his performance involves managing the voices and nuances of more than 12 different characters. 

“Patrick performs it so brilliantly,” Bower said.

This is actually the third year in a row that Bower and Able are teaming up to present this show to Addison.  Why is this show worth repeating?

“For one thing, it fits in very well with the Christmas season,” Bower said.  “It also offers something different that people don’t get to see very often, and that’s the one-man-show format. We do add little things here and there to the show every year to spice it up a bit.” 

This show is also special because of the behind-the-scenes connections that exist between cast and crew. Able was one of Bower’s first students when he began his Addison Trail High School teaching career back in the 1970s.  At the time, Bower was a newcomer to town who knew no one here and the Able family took him under their collective wing. Able and Bower even share the same birthday.

Another one of Bower’s former Addison Trail students, Ralph Petrella, will serve as the assistant director and sound guy for the show.  And Petrella’s son Marcus will be on technical director detail. Yes, connections abound here, and there’s more.  
Bower and company will also be taking this show on the road to downstate to Alton, Bower’s hometown. There is a well-established community theatre program there and Bower’s high school drama director is still a part of it. They will be welcoming Bower and “Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” for three performances in mid-December. 

“One of the performances will include a question-and-answer session afterward for students to ask questions of Pat and the crew,” Bower said.  “We are really looking forward to this opportunity.”

This family-friendly show features both serious and comic moments, and is suitable for older grade school children. I attended one of the 2005 performances and found it highly entertaining. Able’s ability to portray the whole cast of characters through his expert managing of distinctly different character voices was incredible. The best description I can pen here is “awe-inspiring,” but even that doesn’t seem to do it justice. You just have to see this show yourself.  

“Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Dec. 7 and 8, at the Addison Trail High School little theatre, 213 N. Lombard Road. Tickets will be available at the door and are $12 for adults, and $8 for those 18 and younger or senior citizens. Proceeds from the show will benefit the Addison Center for the Arts.

If you bring a nonperishable food item with you for donation to the Addison Community Switchboard, your ticket price will be reduced by $1 for your kindness. 

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