In conjunction with its free-and-on-demand production of A Christmas Carol—An Audio Play, Goodman Theatre opens a new online holiday home—GoodmanTheatre.org/Carol—featuring unique gifts inspired by the play and the current moment. Audiences can also support the production and Chicago artists (Season of Concern) through donations, and help fund the development of new virtual programing while live performances remain suspended due to COVID-19. Bank of America is the Major Corporate Sponsor of A Christmas Carol—An Audio Play.
A Christmas Carol—An Audio Play is Goodman Theatre’s gift to Chicago this year. Recorded at the Goodman by an all-Chicago cast of 19 and an updated audio adaptation (by Director Jessica Thebus, Resident Dramaturg Neena Arndt and Resident Sound Designer Richard Woodbury), the 43rd annual production is the chance for families miles away or across the room to come together to listen to Chicago’s favorite holiday tradition. The audio production starts December 1 at 7pm and will be available to stream free and on-demand through December 31. In addition, the audio play will be broadcast on Chicago public media stations— WBEZ 91.5 FM and Vocalo 91.1 FM—over the Christmas holiday on Thursday, December 24 at 3pm and Friday, December 25 at 11am. Photos and video are now available: GoodmanTheatre.org/PressRoom.
“A Christmas Carol Future” Gift Certificates make a great present this year and are an investment in the future of the production. Receive double the value of the purchase amount (up to a $400 value) redeemable for A Christmas Carol next year, when live in-person indoor performances can safely resume at the Goodman.
“2020. It’s All A Lot of Humbug!” ornaments, apparel and masks are a Scrooge-inspired way to capture the global moment in a year like no other. In addition to 2020-themed merchandise, find Goodman wear (available in youth and adult sizes), hats, music, books and more in the online gift store.
Support A Christmas Carol and Chicago artists/Season of Concern through donations of any amount. As a year filled with unexpected challenges concludes, the Goodman hopes to help restore feelings of connection and joy to audiences through sharing its time-honored tale completely free-of-charge. Donations support the Goodman’s efforts to stay connected with audiences during this time through programs like A Christmas Carol. In addition, this year the Goodman maintains its three-decade-long tradition of collecting donations for Season of Concern—a not-for-profit organization that supports Chicagoland theater makers in times of need through short-term emergency funds. Audiences of A Christmas Carol have generously contributed nearly $600,000 to Season of Concern since 1991.The Goodman will donate a portion of all contributions made to A Christmas Carol to Season of Concern.
Nearly two million people have experienced Goodman Theatre’s A Christmas Carol, “one of Chicago's treasured Christmas traditions” (Theatermania), now in its 43rd year. This holiday season, audiences experience its perennial delight anew with a FREE audio streaming version. Beloved voices and the Goodman’s signature soundscape bring to vivid life Charles Dickens' heartwarming, uplifting classic. Miserly businessman Ebenezer Scrooge’s sizable bank account is only matched by his disdain for the holidays. One Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by four ghosts who take him on a spectacular adventure through his past, present and future, helping him on his discovery of kindness, compassion and redemption.
ABOUT GOODMAN THEATRE
Chicago’s theater since 1925, Goodman Theatre is a not-for-profit arts and community organization in the heart of the Loop, distinguished by the excellence and scope of its artistic programming and community engagement. Led by Artistic Director Robert Falls and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, the theater’s artistic priorities include new play development (more than 150 world or American premieres), large scale musical theater works and reimagined classics. Artists and productions have earned two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards and more than 160 Jeff Awards, among other accolades. The Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle.” Its longtime annual holiday tradition A Christmas Carol, now in its fourth decade, has created a new generation of theatergoers in Chicago. The Goodman also frequently serves as a production and program partner with national and international companies and Chicago’s Off-Loop theaters.
As a cultural and community organization invested in quality, diversity and community, Goodman Theatre is committed to using the art of theater for a better Chicago. Using the tools of the theatrical profession, the Goodman’s Education and Engagement programs aim to develop generations of citizens who understand the cultures and stories of diverse voices. The Goodman’s Alice Rapoport Center for Education and Engagement is the home of these programs, which are offered free of charge for Chicago youth—85% of whom come from underserved communities—schools and life-long learners.
Goodman Theatre was founded by William O. Goodman and his family in honor of their son Kenneth, an important figure in Chicago’s cultural renaissance in the early 1900s. The Goodman family’s legacy lives on through the continued work and dedication of Kenneth’s family, including Albert Ivar Goodman, who with his late mother, Edith-Marie Appleton, contributed the necessary funds for the creation of the new Goodman center in 2000.
Today, Goodman Theatre leadership also includes the distinguished members of the Artistic Collective: Rebecca Gilman, Henry Godinez, Dael Orlandersmith, Steve Scott, Kimberly Senior, Chuck Smith, Regina Taylor, Henry Wishcamper and Mary Zimmerman. Jeff Hesse is Chairman of Goodman Theatre’s Board of Trustees, Fran Del Boca is Women’s Board President and Megan McCarthy Hayes is President of the Scenemakers Board for young professionals.