Backstage at A Christmas Carol

Now in it’s 37th year, the Goodman Theatre’s annual production of A Christmas Carol leaps colorfully off the stage and right into your heart. Cheesy as that sounds, we’re not afraid to say it. 37 years of Charles Dickens’ Scrooge finding a richer way to live filled with hope, love and charity might make some companies shudder. But for Chicago and the Goodman, it’s come to be known as the glittering benchmark of festivity for the holiday season, and this year is no different for the award winning theatre company. With 11 returning cast members—including Larry Yando who leads the cast for his 7th time as the cynically cathartic Ebenezer Scrooge—the production also welcomes some new Carolers to the mix. And one role in particular casts quite a sparkling impression on theatre goers. Meet Lisa Gaye Dixon playing the Ghost of Christmas Present. Out of the four ghosts that visit Scrooge, none is more fun and frivolous than Christmas Present. Lisa lights up the stage with a sweetly contagious laugh, a brilliant scarlet red costume and multicolor glitter. Oh, the glitter. We mean a lot of glitter. At practically every line, a handful of glitter is thrust into the air—it’s her character’s exclamation point. The veteran Chicago actress is dotted with many theatrical milestones, but she puts all of herself into this role. Literally: “The laugh is actually my laugh,” she chuckles while filming our G&F Interview.