Eileen Leahy was invited along to one of the performances last week by its director Tobias Cornwell and now reveals why this unique performance will fill even the most bah humbug of people with all the joys of Christmas…
GOING along to watch a theatrical interpretation of the Charles Dickens Victorian literary classic A Christmas Carol you wouldn’t automatically expect to see actors running round with giant turkeys on their head, lobbing pretend paper snowballs or changing costumes and accents at incredibly high speed but I’m very pleased to say that’s exactly what you will enjoy if you go along to see one of the remaining shows of The Three Scrooges by Get Out Of My Space (GOOMS) at The Beacon.
Having already produced three very successful immersive theatrical dining experiences over the past couple of years – A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Kingdom and A Christmas Carol and Black Fate at The Beacon, (GOOMS) the troupe, headed up by Tobias Cornwell, returned to The Beacon earlier this month with its fourth dramatic – and downright brilliant – show The Three Scrooges.
According to Tobias it’s a ‘hilarious and heartfelt’ adaptation of the much loved A Christmas Carol, where three actors all turn up thinking they’ve been cast as the great bah humbug himself.
“They begin the performance all speaking Ebenezer Scrooge’s lines before an argument ensues – they soon realise they can’t carry on with this madness. They can’t have three Scrooges! Who’s going to play all the other roles?”
And so begins the interactive element of the show where it’s up to the audience to decide who plays Scrooge each time.
On the night my daughter Isabelle and I visit it’s the only female actor in the trio: Nathalie Barclay who is voted to play the lead role – courtesy of the noisiest of rounds of applause from the audience who are all seated watching the performance in The Beacon’s majestic marquee.
Prior to the show kicking off, guests are served a delicious starter of Kentish Blue, Chicory and Walnut Tartlet in the marquee which is festooned with fairylights, twinkling candles and knitted Christmas stockings hung from each of its timber pillars. Each table is prettified with seasonal table settings and guests can order drinks from the nearby bar. In short, it’s a really welcoming ambience and the perfect space in which to enjoy a piece of immersive live theatre where the audience have to be prepared to participate!
Without giving too much away what ensues for the rest of the evening is an engaging – and at times really, really funny – interpretation of the Dickens’ Christmas classic which has been written and directed by Tobias Cornwell and soundtracked with some festive favourites.
“In The Three Scrooges, each and every night the audience have full control over which actor gets to play Ebenezer Scrooge, whilst the other two then have to scramble around to play the 100+ other roles,” Tobias explains.
On the night we visit he and the other actor Jacob Collins (left) share the responsibility of acting out everyone from Scrooge’s former business partner and nemesis Jacob Marley, to the three Christmas spirits of past, present and future, plus numerous other cameos – with a limited variety of multitasking props and costumes. It’s fast and furious at times but completely compelling – and very clever in the way they take on so many different characters.
The end of each act is deftly linked to the next dinner course – at the end of the first act audiences are told to pick up the printed carol sheets in front of them and told by the actors to literally ‘sing for their supper’.
My daughter and I soon realise this is a great idea as you are able to see live theatre and also have a good time by splicing the two. And that, it turns out, is exactly Tobias’s key aim with this particular show.
“Simply put, this Christmas extravaganza is like no other,” he states. “If you’re looking for the complete night out, filled with festive food, wonderful wines, and electric entertainment; without the stress of having to hop from restaurant to theatre to bar, this is the perfect experience for you.
“All you need to do is gather your friends or family, don your favourite Christmas jumpers, and let us fill you up with Christmas cheer, Christmas merriment, and of course a delicious Christmas feast.”
The first year GOOMS collaborated with The Beacon on an immersive dining and theatre adaptation of A Christmas Carol was back in 2019 – in what Tobias says ‘felt like completely different world’. “We only had five performances that year, but it was an absolute hit among those who experienced it, and so we decided that next year we needed to go far bigger.”
But then of course another round of lockdowns hit just before GOOMS’ next festive offering at the end of last year and that sadly threatened to ruin everything Tobias and his collaborators had built up.
“We went from selling the most tickets we’d ever sold, to having to cancel them all, to having to move the entire show 800metres down the road to East Sussex due to them being in a different tier and being able to sell tickets again, – before having to close after three days because of being put into Tier 4. It was an emotional and physical roller coaster, while just trying to deliver some Christmas cheer to people who needed it after the year we’d all had. It was an endeavour that ended up costing me £20,000. Standing in our empty performance space in December last year, feeling like Bob Cratchit to Boris’ Scrooge, I made a promise that we would return – bigger and better than ever.”
Tobias says this was only possible to do courtesy of the help he received from Tunbridge Wells Borough Council.
“Without their support I would not be in the position I am now to put on another show. Thanks to the Council’s financial aid, and that of my friends and family, we are able to come back this Christmas with The Three Scrooges which, simply put, is a Christmas extravaganza that promises to be like no other.”
After experiencing it first hand – complete with the aforementioned giant turkey prop and so many other brilliant elements that would be a shame to spoil until you see it – The Three Scrooges is a must-see show that’s full of pathos, laughs and incredible acting by a trio of very talented actors. If you’re looking for something really special to enjoy this side of Christmas make sure you book in to see it before its run ends on December 19. www.gooms.co.uk
WHAT IS GOOMS?
Get Out Of My Space (GOOMS) was founded in 2019 by Tobias Cornwell who saw a gap in the market for producing exciting theatre locally – and where the audience is just as an important element as the cast members.
Not all GOOMS shows are dining experiences though – some are pure theatre – but each one ensures that every audience member is at the heart of the dramatic action and treated to a unique experience.
For more info or to book tickets which cost £65 per person and include the show and dinner visit www.gooms.co.uk/the-three-scrooges
