Page 5 - AMCC2015-Program-Flipbook
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Dear Friends,
It is with pleasure that I welcome you to Pittsburgh CLO’s
A Musical Christmas Carol, which is based on the novella titled
“A Christmas Carol,” published in London in 1843 by Charles Dickens. This colorful, cautionary
tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and the Cratchits lays bare the meaning of family and community,
with a timeless message that always hits home.
Speaking of home, did you know that Dickens visited Pittsburgh the same year he wrote
“A Christmas Carol?” He was already internationally renowned for penning “Oliver Twist” and
“The Pickwick Papers” when he made his first stateside trip in 1842, and by the end of that
year he had finished his new novella. A committed social reformer, apparently he was on a
fact-finding quest to see if American democracy was an improvement on class-ridden Victorian
England. In Pittsburgh, he and his wife lodged at a hotel that once existed in the vicinity of
Heinz Hall, just a few blocks from the Byham. I feel like we’re part of his story, don’t you?
Bringing Dickens to life today is our estimable cast of actors, including five students under
age twelve (two in their professional debuts) from our CLO Academy, where for a quarter of a
century we’ve been nurturing our area’s finest young performers in acting, singing and dance
instruction. I am delighted that ‘tis the season for new talent to take to the stage, as the
story of their lives continues to be written.
As the sun sets on 2015, I want to remind you how grateful I am for the part you play in our
special CLO community. I’m still high on summer, and just when I think we can’t possibly top
our shows before, with you in mind, we dream up more. This might be the eggnog speaking,
but I think we’re in for an unforgettable 2016.
In the meantime, may the pleasures of the Holiday Season be yours to the fullest.
Be good to each other.
Enjoy the show!
Van Kaplan
Executive Producer
Pittsburgh CLO
pittsburghCLO.org - 3
It is with pleasure that I welcome you to Pittsburgh CLO’s
A Musical Christmas Carol, which is based on the novella titled
“A Christmas Carol,” published in London in 1843 by Charles Dickens. This colorful, cautionary
tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and the Cratchits lays bare the meaning of family and community,
with a timeless message that always hits home.
Speaking of home, did you know that Dickens visited Pittsburgh the same year he wrote
“A Christmas Carol?” He was already internationally renowned for penning “Oliver Twist” and
“The Pickwick Papers” when he made his first stateside trip in 1842, and by the end of that
year he had finished his new novella. A committed social reformer, apparently he was on a
fact-finding quest to see if American democracy was an improvement on class-ridden Victorian
England. In Pittsburgh, he and his wife lodged at a hotel that once existed in the vicinity of
Heinz Hall, just a few blocks from the Byham. I feel like we’re part of his story, don’t you?
Bringing Dickens to life today is our estimable cast of actors, including five students under
age twelve (two in their professional debuts) from our CLO Academy, where for a quarter of a
century we’ve been nurturing our area’s finest young performers in acting, singing and dance
instruction. I am delighted that ‘tis the season for new talent to take to the stage, as the
story of their lives continues to be written.
As the sun sets on 2015, I want to remind you how grateful I am for the part you play in our
special CLO community. I’m still high on summer, and just when I think we can’t possibly top
our shows before, with you in mind, we dream up more. This might be the eggnog speaking,
but I think we’re in for an unforgettable 2016.
In the meantime, may the pleasures of the Holiday Season be yours to the fullest.
Be good to each other.
Enjoy the show!
Van Kaplan
Executive Producer
Pittsburgh CLO
pittsburghCLO.org - 3
