Saturday in November (11/30) 8pm to 10pm and Saturdays in December (12/7, 12/14, 12/21, 12/28) 8pm to 10pm
BATS Improv, San Francisco's center for improvisation, celebrates the holidays this November and December with return of Improvised Dickens Musical, directed by BATS co-founder and company member Brian Lohmann, with musical direction by Joshua Raoul Brody from November 30-December 28 at 8pm at the BATS Bayfront Theatre at Fort Mason in San Francisco.
When the lights come up, the barest of stages is revealed. The players enter, bedecked in elegant Victorian costumes, and a December night on a London street takes shape around them. As they burst into song, you might think this is a scripted musical adaptation of a Dickens story. The truth is it's all being made up in the moment; songs, music, characters and story improvised on the spot.
The history of the show is an actual tale of two cities: San Francisco and Los Angeles. Director Brian Lohmann, a founder of BATS Improv in San Francisco, moved south to LA, where he created Dickens Unscripted, a non-musical format, in 2006 and directed it a half dozen times at various Southern California locations. Meanwhile in San Francisco, BATS Improv first presented its own Improvised Dickens Musical format in 2017, and it became a holiday favorite with audiences and players, returning by popular demand during the next two years. The world took a Dickensian turn in 2020, but with the darkness of the pandemic came some light and hope: Brian Lohmann rejoined BATS in 2023, and this year's Improvised Dickens Musical represents the melding of two separate, beloved traditions.
Lohmann continues, "The popularity of "A Christmas Carol" across winter holiday stages says a lot about Charles Dickens' ability to mix heart, social commentary, and humor with astonishing theatricality. Moving from darkness to light with a spirit of hope and generosity resonates deeply with me at this moment. Dickens continually invites us to pay attention to our fellow human beings and really see them with all their complexity."
$20-$25.
Presented by BATS Improv.
show less
BATS Improv, San Francisco's center for improvisation, celebrates the holidays this November and December with return of Improvised Dickens Musical, directed by BATS co-founder and company member Brian Lohmann, with musical direction by Joshua Raoul Brody from November 30-December 28 at 8pm at the BATS Bayfront Theatre at Fort Mason in San Francisco.
When the lights come up, the barest of stages is revealed. The players enter, bedecked in elegant Victorian costumes, and a December night on a London street takes shape around them. As they burst into song, you might think this is a scripted musical adaptation of a Dickens story. The truth is it's all being made up in the moment; songs, music, characters and story improvised on the spot.
The history of the show is an actual tale of two cities: San Francisco and Los Angeles. Director Brian Lohmann, a founder of BATS Improv in San Francisco, moved south to LA, where he created Dickens Unscripted, a non-musical format, in 2006 and directed it a half dozen times at various Southern California locations. Meanwhile in San Francisco, BATS Improv first presented its own Improvised Dickens Musical format in 2017, and it became a holiday favorite with audiences and players, returning by popular demand during the next two years. The world took a Dickensian turn in 2020, but with the darkness of the pandemic came some light and hope: Brian Lohmann rejoined BATS in 2023, and this year's Improvised Dickens Musical represents the melding of two separate, beloved traditions.
Lohmann continues, "The popularity of "A Christmas Carol" across winter holiday stages says a lot about Charles Dickens' ability to mix heart, social commentary, and humor with astonishing theatricality. Moving from darkness to light with a spirit of hope and generosity resonates deeply with me at this moment. Dickens continually invites us to pay attention to our fellow human beings and really see them with all their complexity."
$20-$25.
Presented by BATS Improv.
Saturday in November (11/30) 8pm to 10pm and Saturdays in December (12/7, 12/14, 12/21, 12/28) 8pm to 10pm
BATS Improv, San Francisco's center for improvisation, celebrates the holidays this November and December with return of Improvised Dickens Musical, directed by BATS co-founder and company member Brian Lohmann, with musical direction by Joshua Raoul Brody from November 30-December 28 at 8pm at the BATS Bayfront Theatre at Fort Mason in San Francisco.
When the lights come up, the barest of stages is revealed. The players enter, bedecked in elegant Victorian costumes, and a December night on a London street takes shape around them. As they burst into song, you might think this is a scripted musical adaptation of a Dickens story. The truth is it's all being made up in the moment; songs, music, characters and story improvised on the spot.
The history of the show is an actual tale of two cities: San Francisco and Los Angeles. Director Brian Lohmann, a founder of BATS Improv in San Francisco, moved south to LA, where he created Dickens Unscripted, a non-musical format, in 2006 and directed it a half dozen times at various Southern California locations. Meanwhile in San Francisco, BATS Improv first presented its own Improvised Dickens Musical format in 2017, and it became a holiday favorite with audiences and players, returning by popular demand during the next two years. The world took a Dickensian turn in 2020, but with the darkness of the pandemic came some light and hope: Brian Lohmann rejoined BATS in 2023, and this year's Improvised Dickens Musical represents the melding of two separate, beloved traditions.
Lohmann continues, "The popularity of "A Christmas Carol" across winter holiday stages says a lot about Charles Dickens' ability to mix heart, social commentary, and humor with astonishing theatricality. Moving from darkness to light with a spirit of hope and generosity resonates deeply with me at this moment. Dickens continually invites us to pay attention to our fellow human beings and really see them with all their complexity."
$20-$25.
Presented by BATS Improv.
read more
BATS Improv, San Francisco's center for improvisation, celebrates the holidays this November and December with return of Improvised Dickens Musical, directed by BATS co-founder and company member Brian Lohmann, with musical direction by Joshua Raoul Brody from November 30-December 28 at 8pm at the BATS Bayfront Theatre at Fort Mason in San Francisco.
When the lights come up, the barest of stages is revealed. The players enter, bedecked in elegant Victorian costumes, and a December night on a London street takes shape around them. As they burst into song, you might think this is a scripted musical adaptation of a Dickens story. The truth is it's all being made up in the moment; songs, music, characters and story improvised on the spot.
The history of the show is an actual tale of two cities: San Francisco and Los Angeles. Director Brian Lohmann, a founder of BATS Improv in San Francisco, moved south to LA, where he created Dickens Unscripted, a non-musical format, in 2006 and directed it a half dozen times at various Southern California locations. Meanwhile in San Francisco, BATS Improv first presented its own Improvised Dickens Musical format in 2017, and it became a holiday favorite with audiences and players, returning by popular demand during the next two years. The world took a Dickensian turn in 2020, but with the darkness of the pandemic came some light and hope: Brian Lohmann rejoined BATS in 2023, and this year's Improvised Dickens Musical represents the melding of two separate, beloved traditions.
Lohmann continues, "The popularity of "A Christmas Carol" across winter holiday stages says a lot about Charles Dickens' ability to mix heart, social commentary, and humor with astonishing theatricality. Moving from darkness to light with a spirit of hope and generosity resonates deeply with me at this moment. Dickens continually invites us to pay attention to our fellow human beings and really see them with all their complexity."
$20-$25.
Presented by BATS Improv.
show less
Date/Times:
Fort Mason Center, Building B, San Francisco, CA 94123
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