Photo Courtesy of Off the Wall Theatre
Bill Kaiser as one of the Scrooges.
In The Great Scrooge Disaster, Off the Wall Theatre promises “the worst production of A Christmas Carol ever done,” and it’s hard to disagree with that… if you expect the holiday classic to be played straight. If you come in expecting a hilarious trainwreck about an unlucky theater company horribly failing to play A Christmas Carol, you will probably be laughing throughout the night.
Beautiful costumes have been bought for the production… and accidentally delivered to another theater company. But the cast is wonderful—at least until we hearthat a violent flu epidemic decimated the company, leaving only a motley group of actors having to play several characters to the point where we end up with two Scrooges on stage. Props are defective, actors can’t stay in character, music and lights go off at all the wrong times. But the show must go on!
While I would love to tell you who plays which character, it’s largely impossible. Playwright and director Dale Gutzman starts off as Scrooge himself, but he is quickly replaced by Bill Kaiser. The cast is an all-star gathering of the regular Off the Wall actors, including Teddi Gardener, Pat Kaiser, Jenny Kosek, Lawrence Lukasavage, James Strange and many more. While some shows take the liberty to break the fourth wall, these actors take that wall down with a wrecking ball; being familiar with the Off the Wall family—and with the local performing arts scene in general—greatly enhances the comical aspect of many jokes. Some song and dance numbers (which aren’t safe from disastrous developments, either) are peppered throughout the show, making for an upbeat rhythm that leaves little time to get bored.
Stay on top of the news of the day
Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays.
This show is definitive proof that it takes more talent to purposefully “fail” than to offer a classic performance. Fully taking advantage of their unique situation allowing them a great deal more freedom than most other performing arts companies, the folks at Off the Wall Theatre really put on a one-of-a-kind show that couldn’t be seen anywhere else. As they claim themselves, “[if you’re] sick and tired of seeing local productions that are good, then try The Great Scrooge Disaster instead.”
Through December 31 at Off the Wall Theatre, 127 E. Wells St.
