Where to see 'A Christmas Carol' on Broadway and in New York
Get into the holiday spirit by seeing these productions of Charles Dickens's classic.
It’s a Dickens of a tale. The holiday theatre season isn’t complete without a visit to A Christmas Carol and the miserly bah-humbugging misanthrope at its center, Ebenezer Scrooge. The classic story has inspired countless theatre versions, with multiple productions popping up each holiday season.
Learn more about A Christmas Carol and the Broadway and Off-Broadway adaptations on stage below, and discover even more holiday and Christmas shows in New York this season.
What is A Christmas Carol about?
In Victorian England, cold-hearted Ebenezer Scrooge gets an otherworldly visit on Christmas Eve from his late business partner, Jacob Marley. He warns the miser to change his ways – and pronto! – or he’ll regret it. Three more ghosts, of Christmas past, present, and future, check in with Scrooge during the night to help make Marley’s case.
These spooky wake-up calls are compelling. Scrooge undergoes a 180-degree transformation and promises to keep the spirit of Christmas. He begins by opening his heart to charity and by lavishing the family of his beleaguered employee Bob Cratchit with compassion, kindness, and a holiday turkey that’s bigger than Cratchit’s fragile son, Tiny Tim.
Current productions of A Christmas Carol in New York
Dickens's nearly 200-year-old tale has inspired countless adaptations, including films, books and, of course, theatre shows. People have performed A Christmas Carol in perfect period garb, as a one-person show, or as a mash-up with other iconic tales, to name just a few. Discover productions of A Christmas Carol on Broadway and beyond that you can check out this festive season.
A Christmas Carol
This solo show, on Broadway through January 1, stars Tony Award winner Jefferson Mays. He plays every A Christmas Carol character, totaling 50 in all – from mean-spirited Scrooge and all his ghostly guides to sweet Tiny Tim and everyone in between.
This theatrical take — adapted by Mays, his wife Susan Lyons, and director Michael Arden — accentuates the dark contours of the story, so be prepared (a loud crash at the very beginning sets the tone). “We need to be as scared as Scrooge so that we are fully open to the idea of ghosts and spirits and change,” Arden told Playbill.
Mays, who left his role as Mayor Shinn in The Music Man for this holiday chestnut, excels when playing multiple roles. He won a Tony for doing just that in the solo show I Am My Own Wife, and he got a nomination for playing eight roles in the musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder.
Get A Christmas Carol tickets now.
Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol
Seeing a story through another character’s eyes can open up a familiar work in surprising ways. In traditional tellings of A Christmas Carol, Jacob Marley’s ghost shows up just long enough to drag some chains and tell his former business partner Scrooge to mend his miserly ways – or else.
But in this stage version written by Tom Mula and directed by Jenn Haltmann, Marley haunts the stage much longer. If he redeems his former business partner’s soul, he’ll also undergo a transformation of his own. He gets help with the assignment from an imp named Bogle. The production features Sevrin Anne Mason as Jacob Marley and Jezabel Montero as Scrooge.
Like the ghosts themselves, Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol leaves on Christmas Eve, so don't miss it.
Get Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol tickets now.
A Sherlock Carol
After that one specter-filled night in A Christmas Carol, Scrooge lived out his life as a changed man – kind, compassionate, humbug-free, and a benefactor for Tiny Tim. Writer and director Mark Shanahan’s play, at New World Stages through January 1, flashes forward to the end of Scrooge’s life.
When Scrooge dies under mysterious circumstances, an adult Tim gets ace detective Sherlock Holmes on the case to find out what happened. Holmes is happy to step up, and the reason why is elementary: with his foe Moriarty out of the picture, he’s a sleuth with time on his hands.
One part Charles Dickens, one part Arthur Conan Doyle, this story unfolds on Christmas Eve – and the detective is haunted by the spirits of the past, present, and future this time. A New York Theatre Guide review of its premiere Off-Broadway run reads: “Fans of both stories may find pleasure in knowing that content doesn't stray too far from the originals.”
Get A Sherlock Carol tickets now.
A Christmas Carol the Musical
A Christmas Carol the Musical is back for its 14th year at the Players Theatre. The story is exactly the same as the original A Christmas Carol, but with song! If you want a break from the same old Christmas songs and want to hear some new ones, the original music of A Christmas Carol the Musical is sure to provide holiday cheer.
Get A Christmas Carol the Musical tickets now.
The Christmas Carols: How These Ghosts Got Scrooged
Catch a one-night-only world-premiere musical at 54 Below this holiday season. The Christmas Carols tells the story of how the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future came to be long before Scrooge entered the picture. Get in the spirit (literally) at this concert.
Get The Christmas Carols: How These Ghosts Got Scrooged tickets now.
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