Interview: Christopher Sieber in “EBENEZER SCROOGE'S BIG SAN DIEGO CHRISTMAS SHOW” at The Old Globe
Christopher Sieber is no stranger to performing on stages all across the nation; besides being a prolific Broadway performer, he has also performed in national tours including “La Cage aux Folles” which brought him to San Diego a decade ago. Now he finds himself playing that famous holiday curmudgeon Ebenezer Scrooge, with a comic twist The Old Globe’s “Ebenezer Scrooge’s BIG San Diego Christmas Show” playing through December 24th.
The cast of CABARET. Photo by Jim Cox.
Christopher Sieber is a renowned musical comedy performer and chances are good you have seen him on stage, or sung along with him on a cast album like ‘The Prom”, “Shrek” and “Matilda.” While he has found the spotlight in San Diego at the La Jolla Playhouse and the Civic Theatre, he is excited to perform on The Old Globe stage in this Christmas comedy.
It must be noted at the start that if the show is half as funny, energetic, and full of laughter as this interview was with him then audiences are in for a hilarious time.
Written by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen, Sieber is proud to call them friends and have had the opportunity to work on readings of their shows. This show, which is a fast-paced and funny twist on the traditional Dickens Christmas story is one he read for years ago, and only now did the stars align for him to perform this on stage.
“Steve and Gordon do write a lot of shows and I am lucky enough to be dear friends with them. They have always asked me to be one of the first people to read their scripts. About six, seven years ago, we had a reading of this show and I was Scrooge then. But when it was staged I wasn’t available to do it.”
He and Steve Rosen have been friends for years after working together on “Spamalot” where Sieber originated the role of Galahad and Rosen was Sir Bedevere and other roles. So when they have a new idea for a play Sieber is always on board to help them with readings of their works.
Now, Christopher is happy to revisit Scrooge on stage in San Diego and work with Greenberg, who is directing, as well as the cast which includes Josh Breckenridge, Dan Rosales, Cathryn Wake, and Jacque Wilke.
“Meeting this cast; everyone's fantastic in it. There are three people who have done this before so they're way ahead of me, and there's another cast member who hasn't done it. So we're catching up with them a bit.
There's only five of us on stage and I’m the only person who plays the same character. It's amazing, all the other actors are playing several characters in town folks and ghosts and things. It’s delightful and entertaining beyond belief.
And fast; it's a very fast and funny story. It’s about 80 minutes long and it goes like a bullet.”
Sieber says that rehearsal is a pivotal moment because it allows the cast to play and fail with a freedom that helps them build trust in working together and a better show for their audiences.
“The best thing you can do is fail because you can change things and you can make things better. Rehearsal is the time for failure, and by the time you've been in front of an audience, you've already failed so many times you’ve figured out what works.”
Christopher says that even with all of his experience on stage, he still feels those nervous butterfly flutters before going on stage but once he hits that stage he knows he’s where he belongs.
“I just love telling the stories, and I'm grateful every single time I'm on stage. Every single performance.
Even if I've been doing it for a year, every single performance is the same way. If I am backstage in the dark waiting to go in the wings, nervous and waiting to go on, but the second my foot hits the light I'm fine.”
Sieber asks, that if you take anything from this interview, it be the following:
It's a wonderful show in the beautiful Balboa Park.
The beautiful Old Globe Theatre complex is stunning.
We, the company of “Ebenezer Scrooge’s BIG San Diego Christmas Show” are amazing.”
How To Get Tickets
You can see Christopher Seiber and the cast of “Ebenezer Scrooge’s BIG San Diego Christmas Show” at The Old Globe through December 24th. For ticket and showtime information go to www.theoldglobe.org