Manchester's Hope Mill Theatre will stage a new production of Alan Menken, Lynn Ahrens, and Mike Ockrent's musical version of A Christmas Carol at The Lowry, Salford during the 2024-2025 season.

Hope Mill co-founders Joseph Houston and William Whelton will co-direct the production, with Whelton also choreographing. The production, part of Hope Mill's expansion to produce musicals on a larger scale and in other venues, will play the The Lowry’s Quays Theatre December 6, 2024-January 4, 2025.

Casting and additional creative team members will be announced at a later date.

Based on Charles Dickens’ 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol has music by Menken, lyrics by Ahrens, and a book by Ockrent and Ahrens. Originally directed by the late Ockrent with choreography by Susan Stroman, the musical was a New York staple from 1994 to 2003, presented annually at The Theater at Madison Square Garden; it was subsequently adapted for TV starring Kelsey Grammer as Ebeneezer Scrooge.

In the musical, Scrooge believes that personal wealth is more valuable than the happiness and comfort of others. With an infuriated "Bah! Humbug!,” he is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve, which leads Scrooge on a journey through the Past, Present, and Future.

Whelton said in a statement, “We are thrilled to be bringing A Christmas Carol to The Lowry. While we will continue to produce work at our wonderful home venue, it has become increasingly challenging for us to stage ambitious, large-scale musicals at Hope Mill, so we have been exploring new ways to work in the future—which includes staging our work at other theatres. We are so excited to be producing A Christmas Carol at The Lowry—a wonderful organization we have long admired that has a thriving, supportive audience. We look forward to our loyal audiences—and new ones—seeing this work in Salford next Christmas.” 

Visit TheLowry.com.