NEW ORLEANS – The NOLA Project theatre company’s free play reading series returns to The Broadside on Wednesday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m. They say, just in time to ruin Christmas.
The itinerant ensemble will read A RATED-R CHRISTMAS CAROL, an irreverent spin on the Charles Dickens classic, by former Artistic Director A.J. Allegra. In this comedic retelling, Ebenezer Scrooge – miser, bigot, misogynist and overall terrible human being – learns the true meaning of Christian charity and, most importantly, what a tremendous bastard everyone really thinks he is.
“The holidays can be heavy, so sometimes people need permission to laugh,” said The NOLA Project Artistic Director Tenaj Wallace. “This script is both irreverent and ridiculous, but it still lands on the truth of what Dickens wrote – community, generosity, and showing up for each other. That’s what we do at The NOLA Project, and that’s exactly what this play delivers.”
The script has been read twice for past NOLA Project fundraisers, in 2016 and 2018, respectively and recorded for posterity in 2020 as part of the company’s PodPlays productions. The 2025 reading will feature NOLA Project ensemble members Khiry Armstead, Natalie Boyd, Keith Claverie, Leslie Claverie, Wayland Cooper, Torey Hayward, Alex Pomes, Matthew Thompson, Anna Toujas, Alex Martinez Wallace, Megan Whittle and Kristin Witt.
Since 2017, The NOLA Project’s mission with Rough Draughts has been to help aspiring actors and playwrights become more involved with the New Orleans theatre community while exposing its audience to new and unique plays that entertain and engage. For more information on Rough Draughts, visit NOLAProject.com.