Consider taking your seat a good 15 minutes before A Christmas Carol is scheduled to begin, because that’s when several cast members and the little band start turning on the festive cheer. Costumes and music from Victorian-era London, and mandarins and fruit-mince pies cheerfully handed out to the audience, fill us with traditional Yuletide spirit well before David Wenham’s Scrooge says “bah humbug!”

David Wenham and the ensemble, A Christmas Carol. Photo © Jeff Busby

It’s the prelude to a two-hour (including interval) warm embrace by this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ 1843 novella of the same name. Written by Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) and directed by Old Vic theatre company Artistic Director Matthew Warchus (Matilda the Musical), this take on A Christmas Carol has become an annual tradition in London since its 2017 debut. It has also toured the US.

The set by Rob Howell (who designed the understated costumes too) and Hugh Vanstone’s lighting are reminiscent of stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Dramatic shafts of white light and magical points of golden light – here emanating from hundreds of lanterns...