JACOB AND EBENEZER: A LOVE STORY by Adam Richter

(TEN-MINUTE PLAY)

Jacob Marley and Ebenezer Scrooge are two of the most ruthless businessmen London has ever seen. They are hated by everyone and hate everyone in return.

But they have each other.

Based on Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," or at least the characters therein.
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JACOB AND EBENEZER: A LOVE STORY

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  • Daniel Prillaman:
    12 Jan. 2023
    “ A good prequel not only stands entirely on its own as a story, but recontextualizes everything we know to come, enhancing both parties for the better. With "Jacob and Ebenezer," Richter has given us a masterclass. Poignant, foreboding, and full of Dickensian charm, it is certainly the best Christmas gift a producing company could share with a community. Go ahead and bill it with your next romp through "A Christmas Carol," because it would do wonders. ”
  • Vince Gatton:
    4 Jan. 2023
    “ The trick Adam Richter pulls off here is remarkable: his invented history for Scrooge and Marley adds layers and shading to our understanding of them, without redeeming, excusing, or re-writing who they become later in the events we know from Dickens. The coldness, cruelty, and greed remain, despite the secret love, care, and passion that exist behind closed doors...and possibly even because of them. A very smart, admirably restrained examination of the twisting effects of stifled and hidden love. ”
  • Philip Middleton Williams:
    4 Jan. 2023
    “ My father read "A Christmas Carol" to my siblings when we were children. It is, in essence, a story for children as a life lesson interlaced with a ghost story to keep the attention of the wee folk. The lesson is simple: realize what the holiday is all about. But what Adam Richter has done with this story is give us the foundation as to why Ebenezer Scrooge is the way he is and why he despises the sentiment of the day: it is a painful reminder of the love he had for Jacob. Complex, truthful, and brutally beautiful. ”
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Jacob Marley and Ebenezer Scrooge were, in "A Christmas Carol," two old white dudes.

This play has no such casting requirement. The author encourages diversity in casting. Though the characters are male-identifying, the actors do not need to be.