Scrooge the Musical at the Old Town Temecula, California, Community Theater

Scrooge the Musical! is currently playing at the Old Town Temecula Community Theater. This play is a great way to kick off the Holiday Season with your family on a cool winter afternoon or night.

I would recommend this play to children ages 6 and up, it has a few somewhat scary scenes, but as long as your child isn't a first time to a play or production, they should be ok. My 6 year old was entertained, laughed alot and enjoyed the show so much he wanted to go back.

Scrooge the musical has a cast of 45 local actors and actress ranging in age from 8 years old to over 60.
The play is directed by Leslie Vecchione who does a wonderful job of making this production come to life.
The play is put on by the Temecula Valley Players.

The musical is about 2 hours, 10 minutes long and is a wonderful journey back into time, around the year 1843 where we meet Scrooge, played to perfection by Paul Kehler, his performance brings so much humor and hilarity to Scrooge, which is a unique way to portray the grouchy old man. He is a breath of fresh air and is the core of the production. He got the kids cracking up several times while still maintaining his "bah humbug" manner.

The ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, offer wonderful special effects throughout their visits, lights, sounds, fog, their costumes sparkling with dramatic flair.

There are beautiful vocals, harmonies and children who have sweet little voices and adorable faces.
The dance numbers are excellent, in fashion with the dancing of that time and the costumes swirl around in rich colors and textures and it is often a feast for the eyes.

There is a scene in which a group of toys comes alive, children dressed as an angel, dolls, a ballerina, toy soldier and a jester. They are adorable as they come to life and dance around the stage as if they were puppets, they children do a great job of making their toys come to life.

Other notable characters in the play that I enjoyed were Carley Valdez, who played Isabel, the love interest of young Scrooge, her angelic voice was my favorite. Bob Cratchit is played by Coley McAvoy, who delivers a very likeable, believable father to Tiny Tim. The Kratchit children were adorable, including Tiny Tim, played by Scott Struble, who sings a lovely song on his own, and Hattie Thomson who plays, Kathy Kratchit with a sweet innocence and bright smile. Another local high school student does an outstanding job in the role of Tom Jenkins, Michael Brambilla, he adds a great British accent and sings "Thank you very much" with enthusiasm and makes one of my favorite scenes authentic with talent beyond his years.
Don Vechionne plays a rather convincingly scary ghost and Young Ebenezer also stands out and adds a youthful glance back at the Scrooge we never knew, played by Sean Roberts.

Overall, the rich choreography, excellent professional, diverse and youthful talent, beautiful harmonies and voices, are a wonderful background to this play which comes together to create a sweet, joyous holiday production that is made even more wonderful because of Scrooge's unique take on his role, a mix of crabby, cranky, wit and silliness at times and because of that he makes the play sparkle.

Scrooge the Musical is playing now at the Old Town Temecula Theater. Have a night out, there are great places to eat on the Front Street Strip and you can catch the show afterwords.

Shows are as follows, see below for ticket information where you can buy tickets online and choose your seats.
Thur. Dec. 3rd, 2009 7:30 pm
Fri. Dec. 4th, 2009 7:30 pm
Sat. Dec 5th, 2009 7:30pm
Sun. Dec. 6th, 2009 6:00 pm
and
Thur. Dec. 10th, 2009 7:30 pm
Fri. Dec. 11th, 2009 7:30 pm
Sat. Dec. 12th, 2009 2:00pm & 7:30 pm
Sun. Dec. 13th, 2009 2:00 pm

Ticket prices range from $20-$28. The theater enables every seat to be a great seat, due to the small venue**
**Thursday Shows offer military/student/senior Discounts, call box office for details.**
Group tickets are also available at a discount rate.

The Box Office is located at 42051 Main St, Temecula, CA
1-866-653-8696 Box Office Telephone Number (Hours vary)
www.temeculatheater.org