Klingon Christmas Carol Opens In Chicago On Friday

st100In what is becoming a holiday tradition, Chicago will play host to a presentation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol…in the original Klingon. Commedia Beauregard’s Star Trek-themed production opens in the windy city on November 25th. See below for more info plus a local news video reports on the show.

 

A Klingon Christmas Carol Comes To Chicago

For the sixth year running (and second year in Chicago) the Commedia Beauregard Theater Company is staging their Klingon interpretation of the Dickens’ classic "A Christmas Carol". Opening night is this Friday (November 25, 2011) at the Greenhouse Theater Center in Chicago, IL, and the show will through Sunday, December 31.

Here is a video report from WGN about prep for this year’s show. 

 

And here is a WSJ report from last year’s performance.

Showings are Thursdays @ 7:30pm, Fridays @ 7:30pm, Saturdays @ 7:30pm, and Sundays @ 2:30pm. Tickets cost $32 tickets and are available at 773.404.7336 or www.GreenhouseTheater.org.
 

Press Release

A KLINGON CHRISTMAS CAROL RETURNS FOR 2nd YEAR
Holiday Hit Done Entirely In The Klingon Language

“A mesmerizing experience.” – Onion A.V. Club

“Clever dialogue and plotting…funny even if [you’ve] never heard of Star Trek.” – CityPages.com

“The play captures the true meaning of Christmas” – Conan O’Brien

Chicago, IL — Commedia Beauregard, has announced that their unique holiday production, A Klingon Christmas Carol, will return to the Greenhouse Theater Center on November 25 and run through December 31, 2011.

The first full-length play ever to be produced entirely in the Klingon language, A Klingon Christmas Carol made a splash on the local, national, and international theatre scene last year.

Scrooge has neither honor nor courage in this uproarious twist on the classic holiday tale. Can the visits of three spirits help him to become a true warrior in time to save Tiny Tim from a horrible fate? Find out in Commedia Beauregard’s melding of Charles Dickens’ morality tale with the language and culture of the Star Trek warrior race. Performed “in the original Klingon” with English subtitles provided for the benefit of audience members who don’t speak the language. Come and see why this huge hit has earned itself a following of the proud and fearless.

“Klingons wouldn’t care if Scrooge was not charitable or nice,” explained Commedia Beauregard Artistic Director Christopher O. Kidder. “The spirits that visit our Scrooge are trying to help him become honorable and courageous, the two highest virtues of Klingon society.”

tlhIngan Hol (Klingon) is a fully functional language, invented for the Star Trek television series by philologist Marc Okrand. The producers of the Star Trek franchise tasked him with creating a complete language that could be used by the alien race that had become a major part of their science fiction universe. As with any translation, working English into Klingon is not a precise process. Translating "A Christmas Carol" into the guttural warrior tongue was especially problematic for Commedia Beauregard because the Klingons have no gods and no Christ, hence no Christmas. The title of the play translates roughly as "Feast of the Long Night Song" and could most closely be understood to be more of a winter solstice carol.

So why Klingon?

“We wanted to put together a show that people outside the theatre world could appreciate,” said Kidder, “but we also wanted to put together a show that fit with our mission of producing translating works.” A Klingon Christmas Carol is a co-production of Commedia Beauregard Chicago NFP. Written by Christopher O. Kidder and Sasha Walloch. Directed by Christopher O. Kidder. Translated by: Laura Thurston, Bill Hedrick, and Christopher O. Kidder. Additional Content and Translation by Chris Lipscombe. Lyrics to qu’wI’ by Terrence Donnelly.

For more information, visit www.CBTheatre.org.
 

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ROFLMAO!! I am gonna tell my sister we are going to go watch a play, you know take some culture in…. but I’d have to keep her blind folded until we passed through the doors! I personallly think it would be funny and interesting at the same time…she’d hate me for quite some time… LOL

Now this puts me in the holiday spirit. Qapla’!

“In life I was your partner… Jakob Martok!”

Shouldn’t that be “A Klingon Kristmas Karol”? ;-P

Beats the heck out of A Star Wars Holiday Special.

btw, that HAD to have been a weekend kicker story. The news director at my station would have had the producer’s head on a batt’leth.

Klingons would just take a disrupter to any spirit that visits in the night.

ummmm……no.

Not sure about that CmdrR! That clip was pretty bad! LOL I don’t think I could sit through that even with a couple of drinks in me- But I am still gonna mess with my sister- think I will send her the date and tell her to keep it reserved for this just to harrass her. Heehee!

Charla – I take it that your sister does not read this site…LOL

They did a skit at the chicago star trek convention… It was really good. I would not have seen it except that they put it on… I am glad I saw it.. If your in chicago you should go see it.

I saw the last performance of “A Klingon Christmas Carol” in St. Paul last year. I’m bummed that it won’t be performed here this year because, after seeing it, I wanted to bring my non-Trek parents to it.

I only went initially because I’ve done most of the Christmas stuff around here and was looking for something new. Despite intentions to keep an open mind, I was prepared to roll my eyes at this thing. The good news: I couldn’t because it was imaginative, engaging, and funny! If you like the Dickens tale, you’ll love this spin on it–guaranteed.

If you’re in Chicagoland–even if you’re not–make the trek and go see it.

I’m an angry Star Trek fan but this makes me feel good all over.

Went to Chicago on the weekend to see this play.

If you’re a Trek fan, you should go see this play.
If you like seeing plays, you should go see this play.
If you like Trek AND enjoy plays, GET YOUR ASS TO CHICAGO!

The cast did a great job, and thanks to Trekmovie.com for the notice.
Never would have seen it without this website.

sQuija